


What We Could Never Be

by MissPolarBear



Category: Mean Girls - Richmond/Benjamin/Fey
Genre: Enemies to Friends, Enemies to Lovers, G/T, Rated teen for swearing and alcohol, Shrinking, Slow Burn, g/t mean girls, tiny Janis Sarkisian
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-15
Updated: 2021-03-16
Packaged: 2021-03-23 03:33:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 21,424
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30049263
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissPolarBear/pseuds/MissPolarBear
Summary: Janis’s throat tightened with a sudden panic, and before she could truly think things through she scrambled to her feet, ignoring the way the entire room seemed to tower over her. A wave of exhaustion hit her, the after-effects of falling unconscious mere minutes ago, but she ignored that as well as she approached her phone.She pressed a hand to the home button— it didn’t even cover the whole thing— and watched as the screen lit up. She was greeted with the familiar background of her and Damian, confirming that this was, in fact, her phone and not some other-worldly hallucination. She didn’t know whether to be comforted or even more frightened.The time was 12:36. Seventh period had started minutes ago, and she was in the girl’s bathroom, the size of a crayon.—Janis shrinks without any explanation.
Relationships: Regina George & Janis Sarkisian
Comments: 3
Kudos: 5





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> heyyy this is already on my tumblr but I’ve decided to post it here, too! :) 
> 
> I’m too lazy to format this properly so words that are meant to be in italics are written /like this/ and bold words are written *like this* fyi

The ceiling slowly came into view as Janis awoke. 

She stared up at it for a long moment, blinking the exhaustion from her eyes. Something in the back of her mind was crying out, telling her that the ceiling was /wrong./ She couldn’t figure out what it was until the realization dawned on her.

The ceiling was impossibly far away. Even from her vantage point, laying down on cold tile, it looked so very distant, hundreds of feet above.

/...she was laying down?/

Why was she laying down? Did she fall asleep at school?

/And why the fuck was the ceiling so far away?/

She shut her eyes for a moment before weakly propping herself up on her elbows, letting a breath escape her lips. If she could just focus on her surroundings, maybe she could figure out what happened. 

Her gaze immediately fell on… something… a good distance away from her. It had to be nearly twice the size of her body and vaguely box-shaped, but upon a closer look, Janis found familiarity in the dark blue casing of the “box.” The realization of what it was only filled her with even more confusion, and she frowned.

It was her phone.

She couldn’t pull her gaze away. There was no mistaking it-- Janis could recognize the painted case anywhere. She had made it herself.

But why was it the length of a car?!

Slowly, very slowly, her gaze turned to her surroundings. She registered the cold tile beneath her, that stretched on and on and on to the walls which were comparable to skyscrapers. High above her, embedded in the walls, was a smooth white shape. Above that, a mirror.

Janis’s confusion was slowly melting into fear. She swallowed hard as the memories of walking the school halls and being hit with a wave of nausea, of stumbling into the girl’s bathroom, of leaning over the sink and trying not to pass out as she pulled out her phone to call Damian, finally returned. She /had/ passed out after all.

And now she was smaller than her own phone.

Her throat tightened with a sudden panic, and before she could truly think things through she scrambled to her feet, ignoring the way the entire room seemed to tower over her. A wave of exhaustion hit her, the after-effects of falling unconscious mere minutes ago, but she ignored that as well as she approached her phone.

She pressed a hand to the home button-- /it didn’t even cover the whole thing--/ and watched as the screen lit up. She was greeted with the familiar background of her and Damian, confirming that this was, in fact, her phone and not some other-worldly hallucination. She didn’t know whether to be comforted or even more frightened. 

The time was 12:36. Seventh period had started minutes ago, and she was in the girl’s bathroom, the size of a crayon. 

Her breath hitched in her throat, and she raised a hand to her mouth, shoulders shaking. She was /not/ going to cry. Not now.

Her phone went dark and she quickly pressed the home button again to turn it on. It was embarrassingly difficult to type in her passcode, having to lean over the screen as far as she could, but after a few moments her phone was unlocked.

Without thinking she pulled up Damian’s number, fully prepared to call him in the middle of class to inform him that she had /shrunk in the girl’s bathroom and didn’t know what to do./ Her hand hovered over the button to call him. It would be so simple.

A second passed. And another. After a solid ten seconds of standing frozen, leaning over her gigantic phone, Janis dropped her arm and stepped back. Her body posture radiated defeat.

She wouldn’t call Damian. She didn’t want him to see her like this.

The mere idea of being in the presence of another person right now made her heart race. Compared to her, they’d be a literal giant. Even if it was someone like Damian, who she knew wouldn’t hurt her, she still didn’t want to face the fact that it would be /so easy/ to. It would only take a flick of the wrist and she might as well be dead.

She paled at the thought. Yeah, there was no way she was going to face another person like this.

The tension in her body remained as she sat down next to her phone, subconsciously hugging her knees. What was she supposed to do, then? She didn’t even understand what had happened to her. Her only option was to sit here and pray she would grow back on her own.

She snapped her head up at the sound of footsteps. The sheer terror that struck her heart was like a bolt of lightning, freezing her to the core.

  
  


High heels clicked just outside the door to the restroom, and Janis was suddenly seized with adrenaline. In seconds she was on her feet, stumbling away from her phone, closer to the wall underneath the sink. Her mind was screaming with alarms to /get away get away hide hide hide/ as she slammed back into the wall, clasping a hand over her mouth in the fear she started outright sobbing.

  
  


She had already figured out that being a few inches tall meant that literally anyone else would be a giant compared to her.

Now, as she watched one of these giants enter the room, she felt it was an understatement.

The pounding in her ears was loud, but it was /nothing/ compared to the sound of the footsteps that rattled her to the core. She went completely still, unable to move even if she wanted to, unable to process how this person was a hundred times her size and had already completely, without a doubt, overpassed her in strength and height and power simply by existing and Janis was just so /small/ and if this person saw her she was fucking /dead because they were going to kill her./

Her fear of being murdered was only solidified when she looked up to the person’s face. 

Of /course/ it had to be Regina.

Janis nearly forgot how to breathe as she approached, her heels stopping just in front of the sink that Janis was underneath. From merely a foot or two away, Janis would have to crane her neck to see Regina’s face, but instead her gaze was locked in front of her on the heels that were taller than /her./ Her phone was a few inches away from Regina’s shoe; she either hadn’t noticed it or she hadn’t cared enough to react to it. The latter was more likely.

Janis was vaguely aware of Regina unzipping her makeup purse-- the same white one she had carried around since eighth grade-- but she couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think. She simply stood frozen against the wall, heart threatening to pound out of her chest, and praying to every god she could think of that Regina would finish doing her makeup and just go the fuck away.

It was a simple movement for Regina to take a step to the side, the edge of her shoe bumping Janis’s phone, but it still made Janis jump. She had nearly forgotten what would inevitably happen next until Regina glanced down, her gaze first falling on Janis’s discarded phone…

...only to trail up and land on Janis herself.

“What…?”

Janis’s blood turned completely to ice as she locked eyes with Regina, the color draining completely from her face. Regina was /looking right at her,/ eyes wide with surprise, a mascara wand threatening to slip from her grasp, and Janis couldn’t move a muscle. 

Regina took a step back, but the tension didn’t leave Janis’s body. Her heart still raced, even when Regina tilted her head, even when she asked, “Janis?” in a tone that could only be complete disbelief. She couldn’t stop her hands from shaking as she pressed herself even further back against the wall, trying desperately to process Regina’s words.

She was talking to her. Janis just needed to respond. One thing at a time.

Janis opened her mouth to speak, but no sound came out. Her throat tightened and she clamped her jaw shut, afraid that if she made any sort of noise it would only come out as a sob. She resorted to raising a trembling hand in a weak wave before dropping her arm and tensing up.

She registered movement and blanched, jerking back, but quickly realized Regina was only kneeling down and not moving to crush her to dust. Regina didn’t seem to notice her flinch, instead tilting her head with undeniable curiosity at Janis’s state as she moved to the floor. “What on /earth/ happened to /you?”/

Janis’s mouth went dry as she processed how close she was to Regina now, but she forced the thought aside. There was nothing she could do about being seen now-- so she had no choice but to go along with it. “I don’t--” she swallowed, barely able to speak. “I don’t know.”

Regina raised an eyebrow, her gaze flickering over Janis’s small form. Janis’s stomach twisted at being seen through such judgemental eyes. “What do you mean you don’t know?”

A broken breath escaped Janis’s lips, and suddenly she jerked forward, shoulder’s crumpling. “I don’t /know,/ it just-- it just /happened!”/ Tears pricked at her eyes as the panic she’d been suppressing finally snapped, rising up like a tidal wave. “I don’t-- I can’t--”

Regina blinked, jumping slightly at Janis’s sudden outburst. Heavy sobs wracked her shoulders, and she shut her eyes, even though her mind was screaming at her to stop showing weakness and making herself vulnerable because she was putting herself in even more danger than before. Regina made a noise of surprise in front of her, and Janis clasped a hand over her mouth, struggling to suppress the emotions that were suddenly pouring out.

“Woah-- relax, Janis, you don’t have to--”

“Sorry, I’m sorry,” Janis forced out, furiously scrubbing at her face and hating every little thing about this nightmare of a situation. Her hands were still shaking violently by the time her breathing returned to normal, and she dropped her gaze to the tile below her, her cheeks hot with shame.

Regina pursed her lips, twirling her mascara idly in one hand. “...you good?”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine,” Janis insisted weakly, wishing Regina would look anywhere but her. 

Regina watched her for a long moment before seemingly deciding she wouldn’t mention Janis’s panic attack. “How long have you been like this?”

Janis dragged a hand down her face, taking a deep breath. “Like… ten minutes? I passed out right-- right before seventh period.”

Regina glanced from Janis to her phone, still laying on the floor. “...do you want me to call Damian, or somethi--”

“No!”

The alarmed objection surprised them both. Janis went frozen as Regina snapped her gaze back to her, eyes wide. “Don’t… don’t tell Damian,” Janis said hoarsely. “Please.”

Regina stared. “What?”

Janis shrank into herself, exhaling weakly. “...I don’t want him to know.”

A confused look crossed Regina’s face. “Isn’t he, like, your best friend, or something?”

Janis ran an arm up her jacket sleeve, shifting on her feet. “I just don’t want to be seen right now,” she admitted softly.

Regina went quiet, processing Janis’s words. Janis kept her gaze on the floor, swallowing hard as Regina finally responded with, “okay.” A beat of silence passed before she continued, her voice taking on her usual authoritative tone. “Are you just gonna hide under the sink all day, then?”

Janis’s cheeks grew hot. “I just woke up here five minutes ago, give me a break,” she muttered. Regina shrugged, and Janis exhaled in response. “I mean, what am I supposed to do?”

Regina raised an eyebrow. “Well, if I were you, I’d be trying to figure out what happened.” When Janis said nothing, she sighed. “What were you doing before… this?”

Janis closed her eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath. “I was…” she wracked her brain for memories, but nothing significant turned up. “I was just walking down the hall, but I thought I was gonna pass out, or throw up, or-- or something, so I came in here. And then I passed out, and, well… I woke up like this.”

“You can’t think of anything important?” Regina asked. Janis knew that the slightly impatient tone was natural for Regina, but it still made her tense up. 

“I’ve been feeling a little weird all day, but…” Janis shrugged unhelpfully. “I mean, I don’t remember drinking any magic potions or whatever.”

“Right.” Regina frowned. “You do wanna get out of here, though, right?”

Janis eyed her warily. The longer Regina stayed here, the more suspicious Janis became. It came as a surprise to her that Regina hadn’t insulted her once, or even moved to touch her or pick her up. Regina had kept a safe distance, and even now, her most recent question was phrased as if she was offering to help Janis. It just didn’t sit right.

It took Janis a second to realize she hadn’t answered the question. She bit her lip, turning her options over in her mind.

It was true she didn’t particularly want to stay in here. Her encounter with Regina made it very clear that she couldn’t hide very effectively if anyone was to come in. And what would she gain from staying in here? Nothing.

Still, the idea of leaving made her stomach twist. Not only did that mean someone-- Regina fucking George, it seemed-- would have to /pick her up,/ but she’d have to go out to where everything was enormous and scary and a threat to someone of her size. And what would she gain from /that?/ Even more panic attacks, probably!

“Um…” Janis glanced up at Regina, fiddling with her hands and trying not to imagine a crowded hallway of giants. “If-- if I left, where would I go?”

Regina shrugged. “Well, you’ll probably turn back eventually, right? Just stay with Damian or someone until you change back.”

Janis’s face immediately lost color. “I— I said I didn’t want anyone to see me.”

“It can’t be that bad, can it?” Regina asked with a somewhat annoyed frown. Janis let out a sharp breath.

/“It’s that bad,”/ she forced out. 

A tense second passed as Regina stared at her, and Janis subconsciously leaned back, throat tightening. She had nearly forgotten who she was talking to.

“I don’t have to help you, you know,” Regina said curtly. Janis stiffened, staring up at her. 

“Sorry.” The word left her mouth before she could think, and Regina’s features softened slightly. Janis’s breath hitched before she continued. “I just… I hate this.” She offered a short, miserable laugh, leaning back against the wall behind her. All she wanted was to hide under here forever, away from everyone. /Especially/ the girl that had ruined her life.

Regina glanced down at her hands, gaze ever calculating. Janis watched her warily as she looked back up, meeting Janis’s eyes. “Listen. I still don’t like you.” Janis bit back a sarcastic reply, lowering her head slightly as Regina continued. “But— I’d feel bad if I left you here to die. So, you’re staying with me.”

Janis blinked, snapping her head up. “What?”

Regina sighed in annoyance, making Janis tense. “I’m helping you, dumbass.”

Janis’s initial hostile reaction to being called a dumbass was shoved aside once she processed the words. Slumping her shoulders in relief, she raised a hand to her forehead and exhaled. “Oh… oh my god. I…” the words tasted bitter in her mouth as she quietly said, “...thank you.” As uncomfortable as the idea made her, staying on Regina’s good side seemed to be her only hope.

“Don’t mention it,” Regina said distastefully, and Janis barely had time to process what was happening when Regina suddenly leaned forward, reaching out to Janis.

Alarms screamed in Janis’s mind. She immediately slammed backwards into the wall, ignoring the jolt of pain in her shoulders as she yelped, “what are you doing?!”

Regina paused, hand halting, confused and somewhat annoyed eyes flickering to Janis. “I’m helping you. Did you even listen to what I said?” The frustration was there in her voice, but Janis barely noticed it, all qualms about staying on Regina’s good side forgotten. 

Janis still had her eyes locked on Regina’s hand, fingers outstretched, way too close for comfort. Her heart raced, panic rising up into her throat. “I— I’m not ready.” 

“Relax, I’m just picking you up,” Regina said impatiently, beginning to reach for Janis again. Janis flinched back despite already being pressed against the wall, heart threatening to pound out of her chest. She involuntarily let out a gasp as Regina’s fingertips grazed her arm, an overwhelming reminder of how small she was. Leaning forward, Regina more than loomed over her. 

“N-no, I— wait—“ Janis froze up as Regina’s hand moved behind her, her thumb hovering in front of her small form. She had no doubt that Regina could /feel/ her heart racing, even though she was barely touching her. 

“I’m waiting,” Regina said with a frown, still keeping her hand cupped around Janis but not yet closing in. Janis swallowed, gaze skittering around nervously. She could feel the heat radiating from Regina’s hand and she resisted the urge to back up, knowing she’d bump into Regina’s palm. 

“I— uh, I—“ Janis could barely form words through the panic, the feeling of being trapped burning in her mind. “I don’t…”

Regina huffed. “Are you done?”

Janis glanced down at her own hands, microscopic in comparison to the one around her. “I…”

“God— okay, I’m done waiting.”

“Wh—?”

Janis let out a startled cry as Regina suddenly pressed her thumb into her, swiftly pinning the smaller girl to her palm before loosely closing her other fingers around her. A jolt of terror coursed through her at the sudden inability to move— and barely a second later her stomach dropped with the world around her as Regina abruptly lifted her up.

Janis squeezed her eyes shut, clinging to Regina’s thumb as the taller girl stood up. She didn’t want to see how high in the air she was.

/No no no no no no—/

“Jesus, calm down. I’m not gonna drop you.”

Janis’s breath was shallow as she meekly opened her eyes, finding herself facing an unamused Regina. Her heart pounded so loudly she was certain Regina could hear it. “Why would you—“ she swallowed, the terror rapidly shifting to anger. “Why would you /do/ that?!”

Regina blinked. “Wh—“

“That was /terrifying!/“ Janis scowled, chest heaving. “You can’t just do that to someone! I thought I was gonna fucking /die!/ What is wrong with you?!” She gave a weak huff, still clinging to Regina’s thumb like her life depended on it. (Which was kind of true.)

Regina stared for several seconds, and in that moment Janis’s frustration quickly morphed to fright. In her panic she had forgotten who was holding her— Regina, the one person in the world that hated her the most. /Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck./

Before she could burst into apologizes that would hopefully keep Regina from changing her mind about helping her, Regina sighed. “Okay, sorry, whatever. You don’t have to make a big deal out of it.”

Some of the tension left Janis’s shoulders as she nodded, even though her heart was still racing. Regina’s uncaring apology meant nothing to her, but at least she wasn’t going to leave her here alone. 

Regina seemed content with Janis’s silence as an answer. “So, how is this gonna work?”

Janis blinked. “What?”

“Well, I can't just walk out into the hallway carrying you,” Regina pointed out. Janis shrugged half-heartedly.

“Yeah, I guess.” A frown of confusion crossed her face. “Why are you in here during class, anyways? It’s been, like, twenty minutes.”

“I have Mr. Southers for history. He wouldn’t even notice if half the class wasn’t there,” Regina explained, a fleeting smile crossing her face. Janis gave a short laugh.

“Right. I have him during ninth period.” She made a face. “Guess I won’t be going to that class, anyways, huh?”

She was distracted when Regina moved suddenly, freezing up. Thankfully, Regina moved slower than before, cautious of Janis’s small form as she set her down next to the faucet on the sink. Janis breathed a sigh of relief as her feet touched solid ground and Regina pulled her hand away. Still, she thought to herself, it was odd to have to look up to meet Regina’s eyes. “Thanks,” she muttered, leaning against the faucet and trying to ignore how strange this whole situation was.

She watched as Regina unzipped her makeup bag again— it was more of a purse than anything, which she carried around by the strap over her shoulder. As the taller girl slipped her mascara back into her bag, Janis suddenly was hit with an idea.

“What if I stayed in your purse?” She suggested somewhat hesitantly.

Regina glanced down at her, then back to her makeup bag. “Yeah… that might actually work. Hang on.” She carefully rifled through the contents of the bag, attempting to clear enough space for a four-inch tall person. After a few seconds she nodded. “That should be good. You ready?”

Janis blinked. “Wait, right now?”

“I have to get back to class,” Regina said with a shrug. “Besides, what else are you waiting for?”

Janis opened her mouth to argue, but no words came out. She faltered slightly. “I… well, okay. But be careful.”

Regina nodded, raising an eyebrow. “You’re not gonna freak out again, right?”

Janis flushed in embarrassment. “Right,” she muttered.

When Regina reached out to her again, she was more prepared this time. Janis took a deep breath, steadying herself as Regina cupped her hand around her in the same manner as before. A moment later she was in Regina’s hand, held above her makeup bag.

“Am I just gonna stay with you until the end of the day, then?” Janis asked. Regina pondered for a moment.

“I guess. What are you gonna do once school’s over?”

Janis hesitated. “I don’t know.”

Regina watched her for a few seconds before shrugging. “Me neither. We’ll figure something out.”

Janis was about to respond, but suddenly Regina swiftly lowered her into the bag. She jumped in surprise to find herself surrounded by various makeup products, watching as Regina pulled her hand out. Janis glanced up at her through the opening of the bag, frowning. “You could give me some warning next time.”

“Fine,” Regina said dismissively, before an amused smile crossed her face. “You’re smaller than almost everything in there.”

Janis sent a scowl to the tube of lip gloss next to her that easily surpassed her by an inch. “Shut up.”

Regina laughed. “Alright, tiny. I’m leaving now, so hang in there.”

“Don’t forget to grab my phone,” Janis reminded her. Regina only gave a nod before she zipped the bag shut, leaving Janis in semi-darkness. The white fabric of the bag allowed for some light to come through, which made it easier for Janis to see around her.

The bag was jostled slightly as Regina leaned to pick up Janis’s phone, and then they were off. Janis eventually found a spot where she could sit comfortably, and she crossed her arms, fiddling with her jacket sleeves as she listened to the clicking of Regina’s heels. The bag swayed with each step, but after a while Janis found the repetitious movement comforting, as Regina walked very elegantly. 

If Janis closed her eyes, she could almost pretend she was in her bed and /not/ three inches tall, inside Regina freaking George’s purse.

The entire situation was insane.

Janis exhaled softly, leaning back against a bottle of concealer. She tilted her head at the sound of a door opening, and she could only assume Regina had arrived back at her seventh period class. Janis forced herself to relax, reminding herself that no one knew she was here.

Eventually the movement around her stopped as Regina sat down at her desk. Janis closed her eyes to steel herself. She was going to be here for a while.

There was just so much to worry about— what was she supposed to do once school ended? How were Damian and Cady going to react about her sudden disappearance? And most importantly…

.../how was she going to get back to normal?/


	2. Chapter Two

Seventh period went by smoothly. If anything, it was quite boring— Janis spent her time listening to the monotone scratching of Regina’s pencil as she took notes, picking at her nails and waiting for the period to be over. Her anxiety had lessened since they had arrived, and even though the fact she /fit in Regina’s purse/ still made her stomach twist, she couldn’t deny that it got old after thirty minutes. There wasn’t much to do in here except scoff at the prices on Regina’s makeup and listen to the muffled sounds of pencils. Janis was nearly asleep until she jumped at the sound of the principal’s voice over the intercom.

“Janis Sarkisian, please report to Miss Anthony’s room immediately.”

Janis stiffened, her blood turning to ice. Somewhere above her, Regina stopped writing for a second. Janis could almost /feel/ the tension between the two of them as they both came to the same realization. Regina seemed to recover faster, it seemed, as a moment later the pencil scratching returned.

Of /course/ Janis’s seventh period teacher was going to realize she wasn’t there. It was only a matter of time. 

She was distracted by Regina’s voice, closer than she expected. “Mr. Southers?” 

Janis rolled her eyes at Regina’s fake sweet tone as she continued. “Janis Sarkisian went home sick. Can I go let the office know?”

Janis’s annoyance vanished and she blinked. After a moment the bag was jostled as Regina stood up, and Janis shifted slightly, mind racing as Regina walked across the room. As much as Regina got on her nerves, she couldn’t deny the fact that she was very quick on her feet. Janis’s initial solution to the intercom announcement had been to panic and nothing more.

The sound of a door opening and shutting filled the air. Janis was not prepared when the bag was suddenly unzipped open, and a hand appeared to scoop her out.

Janis let out a sharp yelp of surprise to find herself in Regina’s palm, held in front of the taller girl. Once the shock faded she took a deep breath, sending Regina a glare. “Once again, I would /really/ appreciate a warning.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know,” Regina said impatiently. Janis huffed, adjusting her position by delicately grabbing onto Regina’s curled fingertips. Regina hardened her gaze before continuing. “They’re gonna realize you’re not at the school.”

“Yeah, that’s why you’re gonna tell them I’m sick,” Janis pointed out. “Right?”

Regina exhaled. “That’ll work for today, maybe tomorrow, too, but /eventually/ they’re gonna get suspicious if you don’t show up to school. And what about your parents?”

Janis ignored the question about her parents, instead sending Janis a frustrated but somewhat worried look. “Do you think I’m gonna be small for that long?”

“I don’t know. Just— /try/ and think ahead, please,” Regina said with a frown. Janis bristled.

“I woke up forty minutes ago /three inches tall./ Sorry if I can’t plan ahead perfectly,” she snapped.

Regina sighed again, to the point it actually ruffled Janis’s hair. She blinked at the odd feeling, raising a hand to her face, her irritation momentarily forgotten. 

“I still can’t believe I’m helping you,” Regina muttered, more to herself than to Janis. She frowned down at the smaller girl. “Listen, I’m gonna tell the office that you went home sick. But seriously, you’re gonna have to figure out a different excuse.”

Janis was about to object, but Regina continued. “I mean, you /really/ have to make some big decisions soon. Are you going to tell your parents about this? Or Damian? School’s gonna end in an hour and a half. What then?”

Janis fell silent, blinking rapidly. Her frustration was mixing in with a sudden stress, and it did not feel good. “I—“

“Just because /I’m/ the one who found you doesn’t mean you’re /my/ responsibility.”

“You’re the one who /offered to help,”/ Janis snapped, lip curling. 

Regina went silent for a moment, her gaze like ice. “Whatever,” she finally huffed. “You have time to think about it.” Janis was startled when her hand suddenly shifted and she was deposited back into the bag, stumbling over the smooth makeup products. She sent Regina a glare only to see that the bag was already zipped shut. 

She sneered, then let her face fall. /Fine./ She didn’t want to deal with Regina, anyways. 

She crossed her arms, fuming silently. Regina’s heels clicked continuously somewhere below her, but she ignored the sound, focusing instead on her own jumbled thoughts.

/“School’s gonna end in an hour and a half. What then?”/

As much as it pained Janis to admit, Regina did have a point. Her only plan right now was to stay out of sight until the end of the school day, but with Regina around, that was taken care of. But what was she supposed to do after?

A frown crossed her face. The very idea of meeting her parents like this made her stomach twist. As far as she could remember, they’ve never once reacted well to anything they might consider strange or unusual. Coming out as a lesbian two years ago was bad enough— Janis simply couldn’t imagine how /this/ would go down. 

So, her parents weren’t an option.

Cady would be more than willing to help, if Janis gathered anything from the few short months she knew her. She was very reliable, and Janis was confident that she could trust her.

However… Janis couldn’t tell Regina that.

Regina currently thought that Cady was /her/ friend. If Janis admitted that she was friends with Cady too, then she would be spilling the secret that innocent Cady was actually a spy. Regina would /not/ take well to that. Janis simply couldn’t do that to Cady.

So, Damian? Janis bit her lip, fiddling with her jacket sleeves. Regina definitely seemed keen on passing her off to Damian, but… the idea made her hesitate.

Damian already did so much for her. He would always be there whenever she was feeling down or having a bad day. He always had an optimistic outlook to counter with Janis’s usual negativity. Even when Janis could /tell/ he was stressed out, Damian would always put her first out.

Would it really be fair to make him deal with /this,/ too?

What if she was stuck like this forever? Damian wouldn’t be able to stop worrying about her. It would ruin his life.

Janis’s breath hitched, but she went dead silent at the sound of a door opening nearby. She listened carefully as Regina entered what she assumed was the office.

“Miss Jones?” Regina asked. 

Janis couldn’t hear Miss Jones’s, the secretary’s answer. Regina continued.

“Janis Sarkisian went home early. She wasn’t feeling well.” Regina’s voice took on an empathetic tone. “All day she was saying she felt like passing out. She just left before seventh period.”

Janis tilted her head, trying to listen for Miss Jones’s voice, but it was muffled. A moment or two later, Regina spoke again. “Of course. Thank you.” The bag was jostled as Regina turned around again, walking out the front office. Janis sank down, rubbing her hands up and down her jacket sleeves.

So, it seemed to have gone well. /That/ was a relief, although Janis still had much to worry about.

A minute or so passed as Regina walked down the hallway. Janis frowned, glancing up at the zipper above her. She had thought Regina would pull her out to talk to her again, but apparently not.

Oh well. Janis crossed her arms.

She didn’t want to talk to her, anyways.

Janis was still shut in the makeup bag by the time Regina opened the door, letting out a soft, “I’m back, Mr. Southers,” before returning to her seat. Janis wasn’t sure if Regina purposely shook the bag as she sat down, but it still hurt like a bitch to knock her shoulder against a bottle of concealer. She huffed in annoyance.

Barely a minute passed before the bell rang to signal the end of seventh period. Janis let out a soft gasp, raising a hand to her ear and wincing at the sharp noise. It wasn’t painful, but it definitely startled her.

Regina stood up again swiftly, making her way to the door. Janis steadied herself before jumping at the sudden array of noises around her. She had forgotten how loud the hallways were when they were crowded.

She leaned further down, her heart skipping a beat. It was nerve-wracking to be unable to see around her. She could only hope nobody would bump into Regina.

A minute or so passed. Over the rest of the walk, Janis’s anxiety lessened slightly. Regina walked smoothly, and nobody seemed to dare bump into her and knock her off course. That never happened to Janis when she was by herself.

Maybe staying with Regina had its perks.

Janis fiddled with her jacket sleeves as Regina turned into a quieter part of the school, presumably her next class. Janis subtly wished she could see where she was, but it almost made her feel better to have somebody else make decisions for her. (Not that she would ever tell Regina, though.)

Janis shifted as Regina sat down again. “Hey, Gretchen.”

Janis immediately rolled her eyes as someone— Gretchen, apparently— replied with a cheerful greeting. She couldn’t ever get away from the plastics, could she? 

Gretchen’s voice dropped slightly. “Did you hear the announcement? Janis didn’t show up at her seventh period class.”

Janis’s heart dropped, and for half a second she thought Regina was going to tell Gretchen the truth— but then Regina spoke again, vanquishing Janis’s fears. “Yeah, who cares?” Regina said somewhat impatiently.

“I have her friend Damian in seventh period,” Gretchen continued excitedly. She was speaking as if this was the most controversial topic in the world. “He was really worried, I could tell. I saw him texting her all period. She never responded. What do you think happened to her? I think she—“

“Gretchen,” Regina cut her off sharply. “I literally couldn’t care any less about what Janis is doing.”

Janis winced at Regina’s words, but the feeling was pushed aside. Damian was worried about her? She had been hoping he would assume she had just skipped class or something. Maybe she shouldn’t have complained to him all this morning about wanting to pass out.

She ignored Gretchen’s soft apology as the bell rang again, signaling eighth period to start. Janis jumped again and immediately scowled. She was never going to get used to that.

Eighth period flew by faster than Janis’s crowded thoughts. Regina and Gretchen whispered the entire period, but Janis couldn’t hear them even if she wanted to. She had spent forty minutes sitting and stressing about Damian and Regina and what to do next, picking at her nails, an uncertain expression on her face, and when the bell rang she was startled at how much time had passed.

She sat up and stretched, listening as Regina and Gretchen spoke. 

“What class do you have next?” Gretchen asked.

“Ninth period study hall,” Regina said shortly.

“I have a Chemistry test next period,” Gretchen said. Regina ignored her.

Janis tilted her head as Regina left the classroom, accompanied by another pair of heels that could only be Gretchen. Gretchen was talking about something, but Janis was busy frowning. She’ll never understand why Regina was so mean to her friends.

As they made their way down the hall, Janis’s sympathy for Gretchen only grew. She never exactly /liked/ Gretchen, but it still hurt to listen to someone be so blatantly ignored. 

After a while Gretchen stopped talking long enough to give a quick farewell as she left for her Chemistry class. Regina had just enough decency to wish her luck on her test before walking away, leaving her and Janis in silence.

Janis exhaled, adjusting her position. Only one more period left in the school day, and then she had to make her decision. 

A door opened. Janis knew they had to be in the library, since this is where Regina had study hall. She knew this because she was /also/ supposed to be in this study hall. 

Regina’s shoes clicked considerably quieter over the carpet before pausing, presumably at one of the tables. Janis listened to her movements, trying to figure out what part of the library they were in.

She was startled when the bag suddenly opened and Regina pulled her out. Being grabbed by a giant hand was stress-inducing enough until she remembered that they were /in class./ 

She immediately dropped lower into Regina’s hand, quickly glancing around her. To her surprise, she wasn’t in the open at all. Regina had chosen a seat in the corner, at a table with a computer, and Janis was being held out of view. There was barely anyone even around.

“Stop freaking out, I wouldn’t take you out if there were people around,” Regina pointed out, careful to keep her voice quiet. Janis glanced back up at her, her cheeks twinging with pink. Was she really that visibly stressed?

The bell rang again, and she jumped, raising a hand to her racing heart. Regina frowned before lowering her to the table, and Janis gladly stepped off into the wooden surface, doing her best to steady her breathing. She spent a few seconds staring at the giant keyboard next to her before tearing her gaze away, ignoring how uncomfortable it made her. Regina continued. “Please tell me you’ve made a decision.”

Janis bit the inside of her cheek, resisting the urge to say /“decision on what?”/ As much as she wanted to stall for time, pissing Regina off was probably the worst way to do that. “I’ve been trying,” she said uneasily.

Regina raised an eyebrow. “Just go with Damian. It’s not that hard of a decision. I mean— Gretchen said he was worried about you.”

Janis’s heart panged, and she rubbed at her arms. “Oh, yeah. Can I text him?”

Regina reached into her pocket, pulling out Janis’s phone and setting it on the table. Janis immediately approached it, kneeling down to press the home button with her entire hand.

Her phone lit up with an array of texts from Damian, all written with the same concerned tone. Janis could almost hear his voice, and her stomach twisted with guilt. It was her fault he was so worried.

She bit her lip before opening the messages, glancing at the phone’s keyboard. He had asked where she was, if she was feeling okay, and everything else he would usually ask when he was stressed about her. 

After a long, long moment, she typed out a single reply.

“‘I went home because I almost passed out in the bathroom, sorry, I forgot to tell you,’” Regina read aloud from above her. She made a face as Janis messaged Damian again. “‘But thanks for worrying about me.’ Wait, so you’re /not/ telling him what happened?”

Janis glanced up at her, giving an uncertain shrug. “I mean… he has theatre after school. I don’t want to bother him.”

Regina sighed, placing her cheek in her hand and frowning down at Janis. “That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.”

“I’m serious,” Janis protested, throwing her hands out for emphasis. “I don’t want to make him deal with this. He has better things to worry about and—“

Janis was cut off as Regina suddenly sat up, shaking the mouse of the computer to turn it on. Janis blinked questioningly, and a second later Regina muttered, “Someone’s looking.”

Oh. Janis had forgotten there were still a small number of people in the library. She tensed up, even though she knew she was well hidden behind the computer. A few seconds later Regina glanced up, gaze hovering for a moment before dropping back down to Janis. “Alright. They’re not looking anymore.”

“Good.” Janis shook her head to refocus again. “Okay, just… I don’t /want/ to tell Damian. That’s that.”

Regina looked like she wanted to argue, but for some miracle, she didn’t. “Alright, fine. Are you gonna tell your parents?”

Janis shifted on her feet. She really didn’t want to get into this around someone like Regina. “Would you want /your/ mom to know if this happened to you?”

Regina’s features suddenly softened in understanding, and Janis had a rare moment of satisfaction that she finally got through to her. “My mom would freak out,” Regina mumbled. Janis nodded.

Her moment of pride vanished as Regina suddenly asked, “so, what’s your plan, then? Just stay at school forever?”

For half a second Janis actually considered it— living in the school walls like a borrower from The Secret World of Arriety— but the small bit of logic in her brain shoved the thought aside. She shifted on her feet, trying to find the words to respond. “I, uh— is there any way I could… stay with you?”

Regina made a face, instantly crushing Janis’s hopes. “What,” she said flatly.

“I don’t have anybody else,” Janis said softly before wincing, absolutely hating how weak she sounded. Heat rose into her cheeks.

Regina stared for a long moment. “Why /should/ I help you?”

Janis scuffed her shoe, glancing down. “I don’t know. You’ve /already/ helped me? Um…”

Regina didn’t respond, and Janis quickly continued. “I’ll try and leave you alone. Just think of it as, uh, a roommate situation. I won’t get in your way or anything, and, uh—“ she bit her lip, struggling to find more words.

To her surprise, Regina exhaled, running a hand down her face. “I… /fine./ I’ll help you.” Her expression hardened. “But only because I feel bad for you, okay? I’m only letting you stay with me because you’re acting completely helpless.”

Janis’s heart nearly stopped. “I— okay,” she agreed, shoulders slumping. “Thank you.”

Obviously, Regina wasn’t her first option. If Regina hadn’t been the one to find her, then Janis wouldn’t have considered her at all. 

But knowing that Regina was going to let her stay with her was /comforting./ Janis simply couldn’t deny that. /She’s not completely alone./

“Mhm.” Regina pulled her gaze away, turning to the computer. “Now let’s try and figure out what happened to you.”


	3. Chapter Three

It had been nearly twenty minutes, and Google was proving itself to be completely useless.

Janis dragged a hand down her face, not even caring at this point how much her makeup smudged. She was sitting down just in front of the keyboard, in the space between Regina’s wrists as she typed. Although that had freaked Janis out at first, unable to escape the feeling that Regina was looming over her, her anxiety was very quickly replaced with annoyance. “There’s really /nothing?”/ she grumbled, downcast gaze glaring at the computer’s screen.

Regina exhaled above her, the frustration audible in her tone when she spoke. “Nothing,” she echoed.

They were currently scrolling through Wikipedia, having somehow found themselves in an article of myths and legends. About ten minutes into their research Janis had suggested the idea that she had somehow cursed herself.

“That’s impossible,” Regina had pointed out dryly.

Janis had gestured widely to herself. “And shrinking’s supposed to be impossible, and yet here we are.”

After another minute or two of bantering, Regina had given in and switched her researching from possible shrinking technology to modern magic. Janis had to admit, finding actual information was much harder this way.

/“Some people believe that disturbing a witch’s grave will curse you with shrinking powers,”/ Janis read aloud, raising an eyebrow before glancing up at Regina. “So maybe I accidentally did that and—“

“Read the rest,” Regina pointed out, heaving a sigh.

Janis frowned, turning back to the screen. /“This was later proven to be false./ Oh. I guess not.”

“This is stupid,” Regina mumbled to herself. Janis briefly wondered if she had meant for the tiny girl not to hear. 

Before Janis could respond, she was cut off by the sound of the bell. She jumped in surprise, having not realized how long it’s been.

Regina blinked, clearly as surprised as she was. She quickly checked her phone. “That was fast,” she admitted before snapping her gaze up. “People are getting ready to leave. You need to hide.”

Janis nodded quickly, having no objections. However, just as Regina scooped her into a palm, she said, “wait.”

Regina stopped, impatient eyes falling on her. “What now?”

“Can you put my phone in your purse with me?” Janis asked, glancing around to make sure no other students could see her. 

Regina shrugged. “Yeah, okay. There should be space.”

A minute later, Janis was back in Regina’s purse, balanced against her phone screen. It was a bit cramped, but Janis could survive. The purse was filled with light when she leaned over and clicked the home button, waking her phone up. She had one notification— a text from Damian.

/“Okay, hope you feel better, love you,”/ Janis whispered to herself, gaze dancing over the message. She bit her lip, leaning back against a tube of lip gloss. 

It was a good thing she didn’t tell Damian about her situation, she thought to herself. Damian was always worried about her. It would be cruel to dump all this on him, too.

With a heavy heart, she typed out a reply.

/Love you too./

She quickly exited out of the app, exhaling softly. Her hand hovered over her screen for a second before she gently tapped the Safari icon, hardening her gaze. If she was going to be stuck in here for another twenty minutes, she might as well do some more research.

—

Janis didn’t get to speak to Regina for a while. Regina had to drive both Gretchen and Karen to their houses, being the only one with a driver’s license, so Janis stayed quiet in the makeup bag and tried to ignore the plastic’s voices for an entire fifteen minutes.

Janis was nearly asleep against her phone by the time they were both gone. Her heart skipped a beat when a hand suddenly dipped into the bag, wrapping around her before pulling her out, but she soon realized that it wasn’t as frightening as it was the first few times. 

“I just dropped Karen off,” Regina explained as she lifted Janis up to see her better. “I figured you’d want some fresh air.” Her car was currently parked at the base of Karen’s driveway.

“You mean y—“ Janis caught herself, clearing her throat. She was about to say “/you mean your perfume, right?”/ but sarcasm probably wasn’t the best response to a surprisingly considerate gesture. “Thank you,” she said gratefully.

Regina nodded, moving her hands slightly before stopping, a frown crossing her face. Janis gave her a questioning look, so Regina asked, “where do you want me to put you?”

“What?” Janis tilted her head before glancing around the car, the realization hitting her. “Oh.” There really wasn’t a good spot for her to stay.

Her mind first went to the dashboard, but she felt uncomfortable at the idea of having nothing to hold on to. And what if she fell?

Another option, she supposed, could be to stay in the cupholder. However, that felt much too demeaning— and Regina would seem way too tall from that perspective. The queen bee was already intimidating enough at this size.

After a second Regina suggested, “you could just stay in the makeup bag like before,” and Janis frowned. She didn’t really want to go back in there after hiding there all day.

“What if…” her gaze travelled to the side. “What if I stayed on your shoulder?”

The second the words left her mouth she braced herself, but to her relief, Regina didn’t seem disgusted— only perplexed. “What?”

Janis shrugged. “It’s just an idea. There aren’t many options.”

“It seems kind of unsafe,” Regina pointed out. Janis couldn’t help but smile.

“Aww, you’re worried about me,” she teased. Regina blinked, cheeks flushing.

“No—“

“Hey, I understand,” Janis cut her off with a laugh. Regina frowned but didn’t respond. “I guess it is kind of dangerous. But I can just hold on to your shirt if I’m gonna fall or something.”

Regina paused, watching her intently for several seconds before finally shrugging. “Alright then.” With one hand, she lifted Janis up to her right shoulder. Janis’s gaze fell on the fabric of Regina’s shirt and hesitated, suddenly wondering if this was a bad idea— but after receiving an impatient sigh from Regina she threw all qualms out the window and carefully stepped onto Regina’s shoulder. It already felt much different than standing on her hand; this was sturdier, as opposed to her soft palm. After a few seconds of marveling at the surreal experience of being this close to a giant person, she sat down, allowing her feet to dangle over the edge of Regina’s shoulder. She could feel Regina’s collarbone beneath her legs, and if she really, really focused, she could sense her heartbeat. 

It was startling.

“You good?” Regina asked after a moment. Her voice was surprisingly tense.

“Yeah,” Janis responded, before tilting her head. “Are you?”

Regina let out a breath. “I just didn’t think…” 

She fell silent, clearly struggling for words. After a second she sighed. “I don’t know. Nevermind.”

Janis lifted her eyebrows. “What?”

“I said nevermind,” Regina said shortly, and that was that. Cautious of Janis on her shoulder, she set the car into drive and pulled out into the road, falling into silence. Janis sent her a curious look but decided not to press further. 

Being on Regina’s shoulder while the car was moving was surprisingly steady. She wasn’t jolted around as much as she thought she would be; no, this was much smoother. Her gaze flickered down for a second and she immediately pulled her eyes away, taking a deep breath and trying not to be too jarred by how high she was. If she was going to be this small for a while, she would have to get used to these kinds of heights.

After a moment, Janis placed her hands down next to her, leaning back slightly to find a more comfortable position. She was just below a human’s eye level, so if she really tried, she could pretend she was human-sized and Regina was gone. She smiled at the thought.

Regina let out a soft breath, shifting her shoulders slightly. Janis blinked at the unexpected movement before glancing over at Regina, who was still watching the road, having not even realized she had jostled Janis. The smaller girl bit her lip at the odd thought that she was small enough to detect even the very slightest movement. It also put her on edge to realize that Regina didn’t even notice /her./

Filled with the sudden worry of being forgotten, Janis spoke up. “So, how far away do you live, anyways?”

Regina glanced at her in the rearview mirror for half a second before turning back to the road. “I thought you knew where I live,” she responded absentmindedly.

Oh, right. Janis had been to her house back in eighth grade when they were friends.

She just never thought she would come back.

“It’s been a few years,” Janis said with a shrug. “Besides, I don’t know how far your house is from Karen’s.”

Regina was quiet for a few seconds before finally saying, “we’re a few minutes away.” 

Janis nodded, before remembering Regina couldn’t see her. “Okay.” Regina didn’t respond.

She clearly wasn’t in the mood to talk. Janis glanced down at her knees, picking at her fishnets and trying not to feel too guilty for the entire situation. (Besides, why should she feel bad for Regina? She was a monster. She didn’t deserve her sympathy.)

As she struggled with her thoughts, she almost didn’t notice the familiar trees and houses of Regina’s neighborhood. She straightened up, immediately recognizing Regina’s house, which appeared so expensive it didn’t seem to belong with the other houses nearby.

Regina pulled into the driveway. As the car halted, Janis held onto the fabric of Regina’s shirt to keep herself from tumbling off. 

“Don’t fall,” Regina said, somewhat sarcastically. Janis shot her a glare, settling down again.

“Yeah, I’m trying.”

Regina turned the car off, but she didn’t get out just yet. Janis peered up at her, a little confused when she saw the hesitance traced in her features. “What’s up?” Janis asked.

Regina blinked, glancing to the side briefly and taking a breath. “Let’s go in through the garage,” she said after a second. “So my mom doesn’t see you.”

Janis didn’t think that really answered her question, but she settled for simply responding, “alright.” 

Regina opened the car door, but instead of scooping Janis into her hand like the small girl expected, she left her on her shoulder as she stood up. Janis jumped, grabbing onto Regina’s shirt for support at the unexpected movement. “Jesus,” she cursed, eyes wide.

Regina picked up her makeup purse, sending Janis a confused look. “What?”

“That was just—“ Janis raised a hand to her heart, her other hand clutching the fabric of Regina’s shirt. She was very aware of how high up she was from the ground. “I wasn’t expecting that,” she forced out. 

“I thought you wanted to be on my shoulder?” Regina pointed out, shutting the car door. Janis shrugged weakly.

“I— I did,” she admitted. “This is fine.” She couldn’t bring herself to lash out at Regina for what would probably be the hundredth time today.

Regina hummed. “Alright. Tell me if you’re gonna fall or something.”

Regina’s heels clicked over the driveway as she walked towards the garage, which was already open. Janis moved closer to Regina’s neck, trying not to sway too much at the movement. The last thing she’d want right now would be to accidentally slip and fall to her death.

Her heart was still racing when Regina opened the garage door, which led to a smaller hallway in the George’s house. Janis immediately recognized it. There was music playing in the other room, which helped to disguise the sound of Regina’s heels as she made her way through the hall. Janis allowed her eyes to wander the picture frames, nostalgia hitting her like a wave. It was shocking how familiar this all felt.

Regina approached a staircase and held onto the railing as she walked up the steps. At this point, Janis was completely leaning against Regina’s neck for any sense of safety suspended five and a half feet off the ground. On the bright side, Regina was walking slowly, clearly mindful of her small passenger. Janis appreciated it, although there was no way she would admit it out loud.

They successfully made it up the stairs, and Janis managed to relax. She was still pressed against Regina’s neck, but now that she wasn’t in any immediate danger, she forced herself to lean away as if it had never happened. Regina glanced in her direction but said nothing.

Regina finally entered her room before turning and shutting the door behind her. Janis couldn’t help but roll her eyes at how nice of a room it was. She already knew it used to be her parent’s. 

“That wasn’t too bad, was it?” Regina asked as she approached her desk. Janis wondered if she was imagining the mockery in her tone.

“I survived,” she responded simply, allowing Regina to scoop her off of her shoulder. Regina lowered her to the desk, and Janis stepped off, grateful to finally have a solid surface to stand on.

Regina’s desk was pushed against the wall, about six feet away from her bed. There was a mirror embedded behind the desk, but after glancing at it once Janis turned away in embarrassment, not wanting to see her disheveled appearance. She already knew she looked like a mess; she didn’t need a mirror to confirm that.

Regina set her makeup bag on the desk as well, before pulling out Janis’s phone. Upon seeing it, Janis straightened up. “Oh, yeah.”

“What?”

“I did more research,” Janis said brightly, feeling as if she was some sort of scientist. She waved for Regina to set her phone down and the taller girl complied, watching curiously as Janis approached her phone. She turned it on, quickly unlocking it and pulling up Safari.

Regina leaned closer, glancing over the last page Janis had opened. “A… counter-spell?” She asked softly.

Janis nodded eagerly. “It’s a kind of potion. If you make it correctly and drink it, it’s supposed to reverse all curses that were set on you.”

Regina tilted her head, giving her a bewildered look. “You’re still set on the curse thing, huh?”

“Yes,” Janis said firmly. “I mean, I have no idea what happened to me. It has to be a curse, or— or a spell, or something.” Regina raised an eyebrow.

“...Okay, fine. How do you even make the potion?”

“The instructions are right here,” Janis said proudly, gesturing to her phone again after scrolling further down. Regina seemed somewhat impressed, but as she read more her face fell into a frown.

“Pine needles, honey… a rose petal?” Regina made a face. “This is all just random stuff.”

“But it’s all random stuff we could find,” Janis argued. “What if it said we needed lava or the heart of my worst enemy or something? I’d be stuck like this forever.”

“I wouldn’t give you my heart, anyways,” Regina mumbled before sighing. “What if this doesn’t work?”

“Then we’ll find something else to try,” Janis said indignantly. “But this has to work.”

Regina watched her for a long moment, blue eyes calculating, before finally giving in. “Alright. We’ll make the potion.” Janis beamed, and Regina continued. “But for now we need to find a place for you to stay. You might be here a while.”

“Very hospitable,” Janis teased. 

Her fears from earlier had lessened, replaced with a confidence she didn’t usually feel. She had a plan. Now, Janis’s future didn’t seem completely hopeless.


	4. Chapter Four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yeah regina and janis still aren’t getting along <3 we love them

“This isn’t going to work,” Regina pointed out, leaning back in her desk chair.

Janis shushed her, waving a hand dismissively. She ignored Regina’s sigh as she walked from one end of the paper to the other, examining the text below her.

It had been about forty-five minutes since they arrived at Regina’s house. Janis had managed to convince Regina to print out the potion instructions, so that they now had a paper with all of the ingredients they’ll need to turn Janis back. Janis was holding a giant piece of pencil lead in her hand, and even though it was turning her palm silver, it was effective.

She crouched down, circling the words “two pine needles” several times. “We can find these easily,” Janis announced. “We’re lucky your house is so close to that forest.”

Behind Regina’s backyard was a pine forest. Janis knew this, since she still had the memories of when she and Regina would explore back there in middle school. “I bet we could find an acorn out there, too,” Janis added, walking further down the list of ingredients to circle that as well.

“Alright,” Regina said dryly. “And where are we supposed to find everything else?”

“Hmm.” Janis glanced down the list. “A teaspoon of honey… everyone has that, right?” Regina frowned, but nodded. “Okay, good. Let’s see— a rose petal? You can buy roses anywhere. Sugar, cinnamon, we definitely have those in the house…”

“The potion also calls for a teardrop,” Regina pointed out, raising an eyebrow. “You feel like crying?”

“Always,” Janis retorted before falling silent, actually processing the question. “I… we can figure that one out when we get there.” She turned the lead over in her hand a few times before drawing a question mark next to “teardrop.” A moment later she glanced down the list, nodding to herself. “That’s everything,” she announced.

“Pine needles, honey, an acorn, a teardrop, a rose petal, sugar, and cinnamon,” Regina recounted, sounded more and more unimpressed with each word. “And it has to be boiling outside in the middle of the night. God, this is stupid.”

“It’s better than nothing,” Janis said defensively.

Janis jumped as a ringing sound suddenly filled the air. Both she and Regina turned towards Janis’s phone, which was now lit up with a call.

Janis rushed over, peering down. Her face paled as she recognized her mother’s contact. “Shit.” For half a second she turned to look up Regina for any sort of help the taller girl could offer, but Regina stayed quiet, eyes trained on the ringing phone. “What do I do?”

Regina pursed her lips before giving a small shrug. She didn’t seem as frightened as Janis, but the overall hesitance was apparent in her features.

Janis haphazardly pushed her messy hair out of her face before dropping to her knees, quickly tapping the screen to answer the call. “H-Hey, mom,” she called hesitantly, hoping her voice was loud enough to carry over.

She flinched at her mother’s sharp tone. “Janis, where are you?”

Janis’s panicked gaze briefly flickered up to Regina again. The taller girl had her chin in her hand, watching Janis with a frown etched into her features. “I’m with Damian,” Janis lied.

Her mother huffed into the receiver. “I’m not surprised. You keep forgetting to tell me when you’re over there.”

Janis couldn’t find the right words to respond, so she simply forced out, “sorry. I’ll remember next time.”

“Mhm. Are you going to sleep over there?”

It wasn’t uncommon for Janis to spend the night with Damian, even on a Wednesday like today, so she was grateful for the excuse. “Yeah, I am.” Her shoulders slumped with relief.

“Alright. Don’t forget to tell me next time.”

“I won’t.”

“Okay. Bye, Janis.”

“Bye.”

Her phone beeped once to announce that the call had ended, and Janis ran her hands up and down her jacket sleeves, taking a deep breath. She could already tell that it would take several minutes for her heart to stop racing.

Regina was oddly quiet. Janis swallowed hard, glancing up at the blonde girl. “Sorry about that.”

Regina’s gaze flickered from the phone to her. “Hm. At least you don’t need to worry about your parents now.”

“Yeah,” Janis agreed softly, lowering her gaze back to her black phone screen. “I… yeah.”

The silence stretched on between them for several seconds. Janis turned her head briefly as Regina straightened up. “Let’s take a break,” Regina said finally. “You look like a mess.”

Janis jerked her shoulders, sneering up at Regina. “Wow, thanks. I feel so much better.”

“I was gonna ask if you wanted to get cleaned up,” Regina added with an eye roll. Janis’s shoulders slumped. /Oh./ “But I could just leave you looking like that—“

“No, no,” Janis grumbled, rubbing at her sleeve and standing up. “I want to.”

“That’s what I thought.” Regina exhaled before reaching out to Janis.

Janis leaned back instinctively as Regina’s hand approached. Fingers brushed her side and she jumped, subconsciously attempting raising her hand up to push them away. “Wait, wait—“

Regina stopped, heaving a sigh. “Do you really have to make a big deal out of this every time I pick you up?” She closed her fingers into a loose fist and scooped the smaller girl off the table, forcing Janis to grab onto her hand for stability. “It’s kind of getting old.”

“Wh—“ Janis flinched at the sudden vertigo, clinging to Regina’s fingers. The overwhelming feeling of being handled was crashing over her like a wave, sending her heart into a frenzy. It definitely wasn’t as bad as the first few times, but— “You have to /ask first./ I— I can’t—“

“Just get used to it,” Regina said dryly, adjusting her hold on the smaller girl before turning and walking to the bathroom. She flicked on the light, then somewhat carefully set Janis down on the counter.

The second Janis touched the cold, white surface, she fell to her knees, pressing a hand to her racing heart. She didn’t give a shit about what Regina said; she would never get used to that.

“Stop acting like you’re dying or something,” Regina snapped, her tone becoming more impatient. Janis tightened her hands into fists, scowling up at her.

“You would act the same way if you were tiny,” she hissed out amongst her rapid breathing. Regina huffed in offense.

“I’m not that dramatic.”

“Please, that’s a fucking lie,” Janis muttered. “You wouldn’t last a day this size.”

“Neither can you, apparently.”

“I— wh— well, I— because it /fucking sucks/,” Janis protested angrily, throwing her hands out for emphasis. Regina only shook her head in annoyance, turning away to open the cabinet below them. As she pulled out a pink washcloth and a bottle of some sort of liquid, Janis brought herself to her feet, taking a deep breath and trying to calm her nerves.

“Here’s makeup remover and a washcloth,” Regina explained shortly, pushing the two in Janis’s direction. “Can you turn the sink on by yourself?”

“Yes,” Janis said indignantly, knowing full well she probably couldn’t.

“Alright. You can figure it all out.” Regina stepped back, giving Janis one more frown. “I’ll be back in twenty minutes. Okay?”

“Whatever.”

“Okay,” Regina muttered, before turning on her heel and leaving the room. The door clicked shut behind her, finally leaving Janis by herself for the first time since she shrunk. The sudden realization hit her, making her shoulders slump. It was honestly such a relief to be by herself.

After a moment she straightened up, turning around to face her reflection in the mirror. She couldn’t help but recoil in disgust. Yes, she knew her makeup was smudged, but she hadn’t realized her eyeliner had dragged down onto her cheeks, giving her the appearance of a raccoon. A few dark trails even reached her chin from when she was crying earlier. Her lips were stained with the same burgundy color she had applied this morning, although the smearing underneath her lips made it appear more like dried blood, as if she was a vampire after a hunt. 

And not only was her makeup horrendous, but her hair was a tangled mess, sticking up in odd places and tied up in knots. She reached her hands up, gingerly tugging at the blonde ends and wincing. It was unfortunate that she didn’t have a brush small enough for her.

As she attempted to unravel her snarled hair with her fingers, she allowed her gaze to flicker down over her outfit. She was wearing one of her many denim jackets; which she had made a few weeks ago. Red floral designs ran up and down the sleeves, weaving their way through the eyes and mouths of painted skulls. She was awfully proud of it, but this jacket didn’t bring her as much comfort as her favorite one— which was hanging in her closet right now back at her house, and definitely over ten times bigger than her entire body. She couldn’t wear it even if she wanted to. She supposed this floral one would have to make do as her only source of comfort.

Underneath the jacket she wore a black tank top, fairly simple compared to her usual taste in clothing. Fishnets trailed from her hips down to her combat boots, beneath her studded denim shorts that were definitely too cold to wear in the chilly autumn days but which she consistently wore anyways.

Out of everything that had happened to her in the past several hours, it was nice to be grateful for one thing; none of her clothes were ruined, and they were the only thing that gave her any feeling of security.

She pulled her hands away from her somewhat less tangled hair and wrapped her arms around her torso, exhaling softly. She could be okay. 

After a minute or two she turned back towards the bottle of makeup remover, a few inches away from her (although it felt more like ten feet to Janis.) She made her way over to it, biting her lip. It was extremely jarring to find that the bottle was taller than her, but she was able to push the thought aside when she reminded herself it definitely was not the most startling realization to hit her today. After spending almost half the school day in a purse, she could handle the act of simply looking at a giant bottle of makeup remover.

She glanced down at the pink washcloth in a pile next to her before looking back at the bottle. After a moment or two of surveying her options, Janis stepped forward, hesitantly reaching up and doing her best to twist the cap off of the bottle. She had to use both hands and all of her strength, but sooner or later the cap had become loosened enough for her to shove off onto the counter. She jumped as it clattered onto the surface next to her, but her surprise was replaced with satisfaction at her victory.

A second later she was at a crossroads again. She placed her hands on her hips as she frowned at the bottle, knowing full well she was not strong enough to pour it out onto the washcloth without either spilling the contents everywhere or damaging her own body. She had a feeling Regina would not react well to either of those. (Well, she definitely would be upset if her makeup remover spilled. Whether she would be unhappy with Janis’s hypothetical injury was hard to judge.)

Janis shook her head to clear her thoughts, frowning down at the washcloth. A fraction of a second later, she was struck with a sudden idea.

Confidently the tiny girl lifted up a corner of the pink washcloth, fiddling with the thick and wieldy material in her hands. She tugged it up, standing on her toes to be able to drape the washcloth over the lip of the bottle. Lowering it inside, she beamed at the sight of the liquid soaking into the washcloth. 

A moment later she tugged the washcloth back out, cautious not to topple the bottle over, and pulled the soaked corner closer to her. She faced the mirror, giving her reflection one last lip curl before wiping at her smudged makeup with the washcloth.

It was such a relief to finally get the smeared, cakey makeup off of her face. The corner of the washcloth was nearly jet black from the stains, but Janis didn’t care, rubbing at her cheeks to clear away the rest of the dark streaks.

Eventually she cleared away enough makeup to feel relaxed. There were still flecks around her eyes and cheeks, but Janis didn’t mind. She knew she was going to feel a bit uncomfortable for Regina to see her without any makeup at all, but she was just happy not to look like a total disaster.

She lowered the washcloth down to the counter, then brushed her hair out of her eyes. She didn’t look great, and she didn’t feel very good either, but at least this was an improvement. 

Her gaze fell on her hands, shiny with makeup remover and smudges of dark makeup. Biting her lip, she turned towards the sink. She might as well find out now if she really could turn the sink on by herself.

She made her way over, wiping at her cheeks to try and remove the makeup residue there. As she stepped up to the faucet handle, she tried to ignore how big it was compared to her and how before this she could have turned it on with one hand. Now, it would have to take her entire body— if not more. 

She tentatively shrugged her denim jacket off, dropping it to the counter behind her. She pulled her gaze away from it, not wanting to think about how tiny and out of place it seemed to the rest of the giant bathroom. Approaching the sink again, Janis leaned against the handle, bracing her heels as she shoved it forward. Water began to drip intermittently from the faucet, and Janis stumbled, grabbing onto the handle for balance.

She peered down into the sink, heart racing. At least she didn’t fall. She doubted she would get that hurt, but it would definitely be embarrassing. 

Swallowing, she turned to the steady downpour from the faucet. Wrapping one arm around the stem of the faucet, she carefully leaned out, allowing the water to cascade over her fingers. It was cold.

Holding her breath, she leaned back in and ran her cold hand down her face to rid herself residual eyeliner or makeup remover. She lowered her shoulders, bringing her hand around to brush her hair back. 

The whole situation was horribly surreal, but at least she was starting to feel a bit better. 

She extended an arm out again to catch more water, then rubbed her hands together to clean them off. Exhaling, Janis tugged the handle back into place— careful not to stumble again— before crouching to pick up her jacket again. It was a very convenient time for her, since right as she was putting her jacket on she heard a knock at the door.

“You good?” It was Regina. /As if it could be anyone else./—

Janis cleared her throat. “Yeah,” she called out, hoping her voice would carry over. “I’m good.”

She must have been loud enough, because a moment later Regina opened the door and leaned in. Her gaze located Janis quickly. “Hey. You done?”

“Mhm.”

“Did you spill anything?”

Janis huffed, crossing her arms and giving Regina a deadpan look. “Don't underestimate me.” 

Regina shrugged, stepping closer to the counter. “Whatever. Just making sure.” Janis’s stomach dropped when Regina suddenly reached a hand forward, but the taller girl simply picked up the bottle of makeup remover before leaning down to return it to the cabinet. Janis blinked several times, shifting on her feet to try and shake away the useless adrenaline. It would be very helpful if her body didn’t react with panic every time Regina moved.

Regina straightened up again, peering down at Janis. “So, you’re feeling better?”

Janis sent her a somewhat suspicious look before nodding. It wasn’t often Regina genuinely asked her about her health. “Yeah. Pretty much.”

“Alright.” Regina brushed a blonde curl over her shoulder. “So, are we making that potion… thing?”

Janis lit up as she remembered she might actually have a way to turn back to normal. (It would also be exciting to make a potion, as if they were witches.) “Hell yeah. Let’s go.”

Regina moved closer, extending a hand, and on instinct Janis stepped back. To her surprise, Regina stopped, sending Janis a frown.

Janis lifted her gaze to meet Regina’s, caution traced in her features. Regina’s hand hovered a few inches away, and Janis was surprised to see that Regina seemed genuinely uncertain in her actions.

“You can…” Janis hesitated. “You can pick me up.”

Regina blinked before huffing, swiftly scooping Janis into her hand. “Yeah, I know.” Janis jumped in surprise, holding onto her fingers and sending an annoyed but somewhat curious look up at Regina.

Maybe things weren’t completely hopeless.


	5. Chapter Five

Janis missed her bed.

She frowned, fiddling with the pastel pink fabric around her. Earlier today when she had asked where she was going to sleep, Regina had given her a scarf and told her to figure it out. After coiling the scarf up like a snake on Regina’s desk, she was bundled in the middle, balanced against her giant phone. It wasn’t as if it was uncomfortable— no, the fabric was very soft. She just wished she wasn’t in Regina George’s house.

It had been a few hours since they arrived. Regina was laying on her bed across the room, complaining to someone on the phone. It might have been Gretchen, but Janis didn’t care enough to ask. 

Janis, meanwhile, was texting Damian. Thankfully he didn’t ask too much about why she went home; he seemed to accept her lie that she was feeling sick, and they didn’t discuss it again. It was nice to be able to message him, still. Sending obnoxious memes to him definitely helped to forget her situation.

She tilted her head as she received another text from him. /“Will you be at school tomorrow?”/ she mumbled out loud. After a moment she typed out a reply on the comically large keyboard.

/I don’t think so. I still don’t feel that great/

She held her breath as Damian responded.

/oh that’s fine! I was just wondering <3/

Her shoulders slumped with relief. Tomorrow was Thursday, so all she had to do was pretend to be sick still and not come to school Friday. Then she would have the whole weekend to deal with her… situation. 

She frowned, running her hand along the rim of her phone case, reminding herself just how big it was. This morning she could hold it in one hand. Now it was taller than her, and it would take all of her weight to even budge it. 

She exited the app she used to text Damian and quickly opened her screenshot of the potion instructions. The paper with the instructions on it was next to her on the desk, but at the moment it was easier for her to read from her phone.

She cleared her throat before sitting up more. “Hey, Regina?”

Regina sent a stern look which turned Janis’s blood to ice, but she refused to flinch. Janis only gave her an expectant look, and Regina sighed, speaking into her phone. “Hang on, Gretchen, I’m gonna call you back.”

She ended the call before sitting up, her glare never leaving. “What do you want?”

Holding eye contact for this long suddenly became too much, and Janis glanced down at her fishnets. “We should start getting the potion together. Right?”

Regina raised an eyebrow, reaching up to flip her hair over her shoulder. Janis watched the movement absentmindedly. “The witch potion? Yeah, that’s definitely gonna work.” 

The sarcasm was so blatant Janis had to roll her eyes. “You keep acting shocked. The potion is our only option, we’ve been over this.”

“Our /only/ option? Really?” Regina leaned back against her headboard, still frowning at Janis. “Why not tell someone? Damian, or… I don’t know, the police.”

Janis huffed. “You just want to get rid of me.”

“Uh, yeah.”

“Wh—“ Janis cut herself off, ignoring the hurt feeling forming in her stomach. She knew Regina hated her, this wasn’t a surprise. “That’s too dangerous.”

“Dangerous?” Regina echoed.

“Yeah. I don’t know how the police would react. What if they just send me to a lab, or something?” Janis shuddered. “I could die.”

Regina shrugged dismissively. “So?”

Janis’s face went blank, and Regina snorted. “It was a joke, dumbass. Lighten up.” Janis was still quiet, so Regina continued. “Why don’t you want to tell Damian? You really think /he’s/ gonna tell the police?”

“What—? No, he wouldn’t. But…” Janis bit her lip. “I don’t want to bother him.”

Regina sighed. “You keep saying that.”

“You keep asking,” Janis said defensively.

“Well, you keep giving the same dumb answer. Just tell Damian and make the witch potion thing with him.” 

“No, I…” Janis bit her tongue. “I just— I don’t want to be seen again.”

Regina blinked. “What are you talking about?”

Janis shifted her position, drawing her knees closer to her chest. It was admittedly much easier to talk to Regina when she was across the room. “I…” her mouth went dry as she thought back to when Regina first found her. The panic had been overwhelming. “When you saw me in the bathroom earlier, it was… um, not fun.”

She lifted her chin, eyes nervous as she tried to gauge Regina’s reaction. Regina was quiet for a second before muttering in response, “Yeah, I know, I was there.” 

“I— exactly!” Janis threw her hands out to emphasize her point. “So you know I didn’t… react well.” She swallowed, looking down at her fishnets again. “I just don’t think I can do something like that again. I’m still not even used to being at your house, I honestly think the stress of moving to /another/ house would kill me.” She gave an uneasy laugh.

Regina scoffed, making Janis wince. “So that’s why you don’t want to stay with Damian? Cause you’re /scared?”/

“I mean…” Janis flushed. “...yeah.”

Regina fell silent, icy blue eyes locked on Janis. After a second she said, “I’m sorry, are you /serious?”/

Janis was quick to defend herself, scrambling to sit up straight among the pink fabric of the scarf. “Wh— you don’t understand! Being small is s-scary!” Her voice broke, and she knew she was blushing /hard./

Regina raised an eyebrow. The uncomfortable feeling of being judged was hitting a little too hard for Janis’s liking. “Isn’t Damian, like, your best friend?” 

“Yes! But— it’s still hard to—“ Janis fumbled for words, unable to suppress the embarrassment. “I just don’t want to be around more people.”

Regina was quiet, like she was waiting for Janis to continue. When Janis only slumped her shoulders, looking away, Regina frowned and spoke again. “That’s dumb.”

Janis didn’t respond, moodily picking at the threads of her fishnets. “Yeah, it is,” she muttered under her breath before speaking up again. “Whatever. Can we just make the potion?”

“The witch potion? Yeah, let’s do it.” Regina’s voice dripped with sarcasm. She stood up, flipping her hair over her shoulder. “Not like it’s a waste of time or anything.”

Janis swallowed, forcing herself to look away as Regina approached. She prayed she would adjust to the vast height difference sooner rather than later. “Okay, so…” she cleared her throat, turning on her phone again and glancing over the ingredient list. “Some of this stuff should be in the house. Like, ah— sugar, honey, and cinnamon.”

Regina still seemed unconvinced that the potion would work, but she had the decency to at least consider Janis’s words. “Yeah, we have sugar and cinnamon. I don’t know about honey, though.”

“Well, we need a teaspoon of honey, so…” Janis reread the list. “And we just need a pinch of sugar and cinnamon. Wait— would it be a pinch of sugar with /my/ hand if /I’m/ supposed to be drinking the potion? Cause if you did it there’d be /more—/ hang on, should we be scaling all of this down to my size?” Janis stared at Regina.

“Uh…” Regina made a face. “I don’t know?”

Janis pursed her lips. “I don’t want to make this wrong.”

“Relax. Let me see the list again.”

Janis swallowed, turning the phone screen more so Regina could see. Was she really that visibly stressed? She thought she was better at hiding it. 

“It says we need a rose petal. An acorn, too. We can’t find tiny versions of those.”

Janis released a breath. “Oh. So you’re saying we don’t try and scale it down?”

“No.” Regina shrugged. “I mean, I think.”

She didn’t offer any more advice, so Janis simply nodded. “Okay. Alright. So…” she rubbed at her face. “Okay. Let’s go get the honey and the sugar and the cinnamon and figure it out from there.”

“Hm.” Regina peered down at Janis. “They’re all in the kitchen. Am I carrying you?” 

Well, Janis was definitely sick of just sitting around on Regina's desk, but she also wasn’t fond of the idea of Regina picking her up again. “Um… is your mom still in the kitchen?”

“I don’t know. We got home a few hours ago, she’s probably watching TV or something.”

“Oh.” Janis peered down at the pink fabric around her before asking, “Will it be quick?”

“I don’t know, maybe?” Regina’s voice was taking on a much more exasperated tone. “Janis, we’re literally just going downstairs.”

“Ah… okay, alright, fine.” Janis forced herself to her feet, balanced among the fabric of the scarf. “Let’s get this over with.”

“You don’t have to come with me if you don’t want to,” Regina pointed out.

Janis definitely was not the type to back down easily. She shot Regina a glance, ignoring how the other girl towered over her. “No, we’re going together. Let’s go.” She held her arms out expectantly.

Regina frowned, but seemed to accept her response. She didn’t hesitate to reach out, and while Janis tensed as her fingers closed around her, she had to admit it got easier after the first few times. 

A moment later Janis was held in Regina’s hands. The smaller girl shifted uneasily, leaning into Regina’s fingers. “Can I sit on your shoulder?” Janis asked hesitantly.

Regina peered closer. “Didn’t you get all scared last time?”

“That was—“ Janis huffed. “That was before. I’m fine now.”

Regina shrugged. “I mean, alright.” She slowly lifted Janis to her shoulder, moving carefully since Janis was now in the corners of her vision. “If you fall it’s not my fault, though.”

Janis climbed up onto her shoulder, trying not to look down at the carpet far, far below them. She released a breath as Regina pulled her hands away. “Okay, we’re good.”

“Mhm.” Regina took a startling step forward, and almost immediately Janis was pressed against her neck, eyes wide.

“No, no, no, wait, not good—“

Regina halted, her voice heavy with irritation. /“Really,/ Janis?”

Janis’s stomach was still churning from the unexpected movement. She blinked several times, realizing she was clinging to Regina’s hoop earring like her life depended on it. A blush creeping into her cheeks, she let go, wiping her hands on her fishnets uneasily. “Sorry, sorry. I just— wasn’t prepared.”

“What did you think was gonna happen?”

“Yeah, yeah, sorry,” Janis said absentmindedly, unable to summon the energy to argue. “We can go now.”

“Alright. Stop freaking out.”

Janis didn’t respond, only tensed as Regina stepped forward again. It was terrifying to know that a fall from this height would kill her— but she reminded herself that anything was better than being in Regina’s hands. At least sitting on the other girl’s shoulder was less humiliating. She could only hope that if she /did/ fall, Regina would have quick reflexes.

Regina left her room, and it only took a few seconds to reach the top of the stairs. As Janis’s gaze fell on how impossibly far away the bottom of the staircase was, she paled, subconsciously grabbing onto Regina's earring again. Regina, at least, stopped walking. “Quit touching my earring.”

Janis blinked, unable to look away from the enormous staircase. The nausea she felt was overwhelming. “I can’t,” she whispered.

Regina sighed. “You literally asked to sit on my shoulder.”

“I know, but—“

“You were on my shoulder when we went up the stairs.”

“I— I know, but—“

“So you’ll /be fine.”/

Janis was more than ready to snap back, but suddenly Regina took a step down the stairs and the vertigo shut her up completely. The feeling of falling jerked at her entire body and she gasped, tightening her grip on Regina’s cold earring.

Regina, at least, walked slowly down the stairs. By the third step Janis had draped herself against Regina's neck, squeezing her eyes shut and trying to convince herself that she wasn’t one stumble away from certain death.

A moment later the nauseating movement ceased completely. Janis’s heart was fluttering like a hummingbird by the time she opened her eyes, finding herself at the bottom of the stairs. “We—“ her voice was weak. “We’re done?”

Regina let out an impatient breath. “Yeah. How bad was it?”

Janis swallowed. “Not— not awful,” she lied, before breaking into a cough.

“Mkay.” Regina peered around the foyer, into the kitchen. “It looks like my mom isn’t around. We’re all set.”

“Good, good,” Janis mumbled absentmindedly, pulling away from Regina’s neck as the taller girl made her way through the house. It was only a matter of time until they reached the kitchen, which was just as blindingly clean as Janis remembered it.

The kitchen had always been large, but now it felt as if the ceiling was larger than the sky. Janis was feeling a little lightheaded by the time Regina reached up to her, her hand hovering nearby but not touching her yet.

“Can you let go of my earring now?” Regina asked after a moment. Janis flushed, realizing she was still clinging to her hoop earring, knuckles white. She gently let go, and without another word Regina scooped her up and lowered her to the counter. Janis couldn’t find the energy to complain, sinking down into the cold surface.

She watched as Regina stepped back and reached up to the cupboard, peering inside. “We need sugar and cinnamon, right?”

From the angle she was at Janis couldn’t see the interior. She lowered herself into a sitting position, very aware of how alone she was on the empty counter. “Yeah. And honey.”

Regina nodded before setting a circular, plastic container on the counter, filled a majority of the way with brown powder. “We have cinnamon. And…” she glanced around before gesturing to a glass container three times Janis’s height, hidden in the back corner of the counter. “That’s sugar, I’m pretty sure.”

“A pinch of each,” Janis recalled, fiddling with the strings of her fishnets. Just as Regina opened another cupboard to find a bowl, the sound of her ringtone filled the room.

Regina blinked, placing a blue bowl on the counter before pulling her phone out of her pocket. Almost immediately she rolled her eyes. “It’s Gretchen.”

“Oh.” Janis wasn’t surprised. “Didn’t you tell her you were gonna call her back?”

Regina ignored her question. “Can I answer it, or will you cry?”

Janis sent her a glare before pulling herself to her feet, approaching the bowl. “Whatever. I don’t care.”

Regina only sighed before answering the call. “What?”

Gretchen immediately launched into some spiel that Janis could hear from the counter. Janis watched curiously as Regina played with her hair, the annoyance clear in her features as her friend rambled away about some topic she clearly didn’t care about. Janis, personally, would never answer the phone like that if Damian was calling. She wondered if it hurt Gretchen’s feelings, or if the girl was too caught up in her words to notice.

“Yeah.” Regina caught Janis’s gaze and rolled her eyes. Janis merely shrugged before turning away from Regina, facing the blue bowl which— like many things— surpassed her in height. It was glass and cold to the touch, she found as she ran her hand along the side.

Would she ever adjust to being three inches tall? It was jarring to see phone cases bigger than her, or being able to hide away in a purse. Things she could do so easily as a human— simple actions like walking across the room or opening a door— were now impossible without assistance. It was so easy to feel weak, or… insignificant, especially around someone like Regina.

Janis’s gaze flickered up to Regina, who still seemed irritated to be talking to Gretchen on the phone. There was actually one thing about being tiny that didn’t shock her to the core— and that was how she felt around Regina.

She was /used/ to feeling worthless when Regina was around. It wasn’t a new experience for Regina to be able to shut her down, or hurt her feelings, or drop her at a moment’s notice. It was peculiar, but… oddly comforting, that her powerlessness in comparison to the other girl was the only sense of normalcy she had now.

Janis was completely zoned out by the time Regina ended the call with a “bye, talk to you later,” so she couldn’t tell whether it had been two minutes or ten. The small girl watched as Regina set her phone face down on the counter, and she couldn’t help but ask, “Do you… like Gretchen?”

Regina sent her a weird look. “What are you talking about? She’s my friend.”

“I mean, I know you hang out together, but…” Janis shrugged. “I don’t know. I’m just getting weird vibes.”

“She’s annoying,” Regina pointed out, picking up the cinnamon to open it. “But she’s my friend.”

Janis watched her take a small pinch of cinnamon from the container and sprinkle it into the bowl. “Hm.”

Regina didn’t seem satisfied with that response. “What, you think I’m lying or something?”

/...yeah, a little./ Janis didn’t look at her, choosing instead to stand on her toes and attempt to peer into the bowl. “I just don’t talk to Damian like you talk to Gretchen.” She tried to keep her voice clear and even, expressing her nonchalance.

She was very aware of Regina’s eyes on her, making her heart rate pick up. Several seconds passed before Regina responded. “We’re just different.”

“What, you and me, or you and Gretchen?” Janis asked. She glanced up at Regina. “Don’t forget the sugar.”

Regina narrowed her eyes before pulling the glass container closer. “You and me. Obviously. I don’t hang out with people like Damian.”

/Don’t ever talk about Damian./ Janis subconsciously tightened her hands into fists before forcing herself to relax, ignoring the way her heart pounded. “What?”

Regina dropped a pinch of sugar into the bowl. “Don’t get offended, I’m just saying. I’m not interested in being friends with the art freaks.” She eyed Janis, making the small girl’s blood boil. “But you already knew that.”

“You—“ Janis cut herself off, taking a deep breath. Her heart was racing; if she didn’t calm down she honestly might have a heart attack. “You… y-yeah, I know.” Her response was weak. She could tell, because Regina simply tilted her head and slid the glass container back into the corner.

Janis watched, arms crossed, as the taller girl placed the cinnamon back into the cupboard. Regina seemed to pick up on how quiet she was, so she filled the silence by saying, “Damian’s nice enough. I would just rather be friends with Gretchen.”

Janis was furious at herself for bringing up Damian in the first place, because then she wouldn’t be having this conversation. How did it even steer this far astray? “Yeah, he’s nice. That’s why I’m not mean to him like you’re mean to Gretchen,” Janis huffed, tapping her foot anxiously. She knew she was pushing a little too far, but she couldn’t help it.

Regina stopped for a second before placing her hands on the edge of the counter, frowning down at Janis. “What?”

Her voice was irritated, but Janis could detect a hint of genuine confusion. She opened her mouth to respond, but Regina continued. “I’m not mean to Gretchen.”

“You rolled your eyes at me when she was talking,” Janis pointed out.

“Because she was being stupid.”

“It’s kind of rude.”

“That’s just what friends do,” Regina snapped, sending a scowl just angry enough to keep Janis quiet. The tiny girl shrugged, shifting on her feet.

A few seconds of silence passed until Janis cleared her throat, turning back to the bowl. “So we— we still need honey, right?”

“We don’t have any,” Regina said shortly.

Janis was feeling awfully bold. “Can you check?” 

Regina’s icy eyes bore into her like knives. Janis held her gaze, until Regina suddenly stepped away from the counter. “Fine.” 

Janis’s shoulders slumped as Regina spun away, crossing the room to a different cupboard. Her heart was pounding, and she wanted nothing more than to chew Regina out and call her a life-ruining bitch of a friend, but she reminded herself that she needed Regina to help her. Janis was already pushing her limits, she could tell.

Regina slammed a cupboard shut. Janis jumped. “No, we don’t have any.”

“Oh,” Janis said softly, before realizing Regina probably couldn’t hear her from across the room. She waited for the blonde-haired girl to approach again before responding. “I guess we’ll just have to get some, then.”

Regina’s eyes were still glittering with annoyance. “Yeah.”

“...wait, like right now?”

“No,” Regina retorted. “It’s almost seven o’clock. We can go to the store tomorrow.” 

Janis was more than certain Regina was not afraid to go out in the evenings (her Instagram account was proof of that.) Still, it was obvious that Regina was getting sick and tired of helping her, even if it had only been six hours at most, so Janis kept her mouth shut and nodded. She wasn’t interested in riding in the car again, anyways.

Regina gestured to the bowl. “We just needed cinnamon and sugar, right?” Janis nodded again, and Regina huffed. “Good. We’re going back upstairs now.” She swept Janis up into her hand, who let out a breath of surprise, and lifted her to her shoulder.

As Janis haphazardly scrambled into a sitting position, she hissed, “I thought we talked about ask—“

“Asking first,” Regina cut her off sharply as she picked up her phone and the bowl. “Yeah, yeah, whatever, sorry.”

“Kind words,” Janis muttered, crossing her arms. Regina didn’t respond, only whisked her way over to the stairs with a bit too much sway in her step to be accidental. Janis, honestly, didn’t realize it was possible to walk aggressively until she experienced it firsthand here on Regina’s shoulder, where she wondered briefly if Regina was gonna knock her off. She frowned.

The third time on the stairs was definitely the easiest, especially since they were going up again. Janis momentarily considered holding onto Regina’s earring, but changed her mind. 

Almost immediately after arriving in Regina’s room both Janis and the bowl were set, rather roughly, on her desk.

Janis stood up, holding the bowl for support. “Thanks,” she muttered sarcastically as Regina stepped back. Once she regained her bearings she turned to the sheet of potion ingredients, where she had left it. “So… cinnamon and sugar, done.”

Regina clearly had enough decency in her soul to pick up a pencil and cross both ingredients off the list. That— unfortunately— is where her compassion ended, for immediately she dropped the pencil and curled her lip at Janis. “This potion better work.”

Janis nearly laughed, peering up at the taller girl. “I thought you said you didn’t think it would work?”

“I still think it’s impossible,” Regina said shortly. “I just want you out of here, even if it means we have to make some stupid potion.” Janis snorted, not even offended.

“Yeah, me too.”

Regina rolled her eyes. “Whatever. Now, I expect you to leave me alone, okay? I’m gonna call Karen and tell her I have to cancel.” She sneered. “We were gonna go meet up somewhere, but you’ll probably die on your own.”

“Mhm.” Janis crossed her arms. She considered making a teasing joke about Regina wanting to keep her safe, but changed her mind. “Okay, whatever. Where am I sleeping?”

“I gave you a scarf,” Regina pointed out before scooping her phone up and turning away. Janis watched, frowning, as Regina crossed the room to her bed. /Alright, fine./

She sighed, looking back down at her list. They successfully retrieved the sugar and the cinnamon (as if there was any difficulty at all), and now only five more ingredients were needed. She could only pray it would get her back to normal. It was hard to judge just how long she could stand this. Hell, how long would Regina be able to stand /her?/ 

Five more ingredients. That’s all she needed.

Then this would be over.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> two pine needles  
> one teaspoon of honey  
> one rose petal  
> one teardrop  
> one acorn  
> a pinch of cinnamon XX  
> a pinch of sugar XX
> 
> combine ingredients with water and boil under moonlight


	6. Chapter Six

Waking up was one of the strangest experiences of Janis’s life.

She stared blankly at the pink fabric around her, trying to figure out why she wasn’t in her bed. A glance up at the ceiling, much too far away, made her freeze. This felt awfully familiar.

A sinking feeling settled in her stomach as she pushed herself up and peered around the room. Pastel pink walls stared down at her, an uncomfortable reminder of where she was. For a moment she prayed that she was dreaming, but after pinching herself she winced and reluctantly accepted that she really was three inches tall.

She turned her head as the bathroom door opened and Regina stepped out, adjusting her curled hair. Janis stiffened as her eyes fell on her, but Regina only said, “oh, you’re awake,” and walked to her closet on the other side of the room, ignoring her completely.

Janis was both relieved and offended. As Regina pulled a white skirt from her closet, Janis sat up more, rubbing at her eyes. “What are you doing?”

Regina sent her an odd look. “Uh, getting ready for school.”

“Oh.” Janis’s gaze flickered to the window, where the sky was still fairly dark. “I forgot about that.” It was hard to imagine that twenty-four hours ago, she herself was human-sized and, if she remembered correctly, worrying about her upcoming chemistry test. Chemistry was the last thing on her mind this morning. 

Regina didn’t respond, only foraged through her closet for a moment. Janis didn’t particularly care, but she could tell they were both avoiding the elephant in the room. 

With nothing else to do, Janis picked at her nails while Regina went to change in the bathroom. It was only when the taller girl returned that Janis spoke up. “So, what are we gonna do about school?”

A second of silence passed as Regina sat down at the desk. “What do you mean?” 

“You know what I mean,” Janis said pointedly. “Am I going with you or not?”

She knew all too well that Regina didn’t like her. It was going to be nice to spend the school day by herself, since Regina undoubtedly would want her to stay here.

“Well, obviously.”

It took Janis a second to register her words, and she immediately squinted up at her. “What? I—“

“Don’t be weird about it,” Regina cut her off with an eye roll. “I just don’t trust you on your own.”

“Huh—? Why not?” Janis scoffed, pulling herself to her feet. It took an embarrassingly long time to step through the fabric of the scarf, but once she made it to the desk she placed her hands on her hips and glared up at her. Her arms ached slightly from sleeping in her denim jacket, but she refused to take it off around Regina. “I’m not completely helpless.”

Regina raised an eyebrow. “I don’t know. You could barely stand up on your own.”

Janis gestured to the scarf next to her, several times her size. “Oh, come on, that’s not my fault! I’d like to see you do that without falling.”

She rolled her eyes. “Yeah, okay. And speaking of falling— I don’t trust you not to slip off the desk and die. So, you’re coming to school.”

“What if I fall out of your purse and die, huh? What then?”

“You didn’t yesterday. Relax.”

Janis huffed as Regina picked up her phone. She was about to continue arguing until the air filled with the sound of Regina’s phone ringing. “Wait, what are you—“

Regina raised a finger to her lips and Janis fell silent. The tiny girl could vaguely hear someone on the other end say something, and Regina spoke, her voice taking on a surprisingly light tone. “Hi, this is Janis Sarkisian’s mother. Janis isn’t feeling well and she won’t be at school today.” After a moment, she finished off with, “yes, thank you. Goodbye.”

Janis was dumbfounded as Regina ended the call, setting her phone down on the desk. Regina caught her staring, and the corners of her lips twitched into a smile. “That’s how you get away with skipping school. I do it all the time.”

“I never thought of that,” Janis admitted, shifting on her feet before straightening up. “Well, whatever. I still think I should stay home.”

Right away, Regina frowned again. /“No.”/

“Well—“ Janis huffed. “Okay, fine. Just don’t let me die.”

“That’s why you’re not staying home,” Regina pointed out before sitting up. “You ready to go?”

Janis blinked. “Right now?”

“No, tomorrow,” Regina said sarcastically. Janis curled her lip before huffing.

“Alright.” 

Regina picked up her white purse from her chair and slung it over her shoulder before straightening up. “I’m picking you up now,” she said simply, which was probably the most consideration Janis had been given since yesterday.

Janis subconsciously leaned back as Regina reached for her, but even she could admit that she was adjusting fairly well. She didn’t even flinch as her hand closed around her waist, scooping her up... although her heartbeat did quicken as the vertigo hit.

“Can you go down the stairs on my shoulder?” Regina asked after a moment. “Or are you going to freak out again?”

Janis sent her a glare, adjusting her position by holding onto her thumb. “I didn’t freak out last time.” After a moment’s hesitation, she added, “but you should hold me in your hand, just in case.”

Regina shrugged, bringing her a bit closer as she stood up. Janis bit the inside of her cheek, refusing to look down, focusing instead on the sway of Regina’s hand as she walked out of the room. “B-Because,” Janis added, earning a glance, “it’s so early. We’re both tired, so it’d be risky.”

“To walk down the stairs?” 

“Yes,” Janis said firmly. “You could fall.” It was a weak excuse not to sit on Regina’s shoulder, but she hoped Regina would buy it.

Regina approached the top of the stairs. “That’s stupid. I’ve never fallen down the stairs in my life.”

Oh. The last time Janis fell down the stairs was four days ago, but in that moment she decided it would be better if Regina didn’t know. “Um… yeah. But it’s still possib— /woah.”/ She flinched as Regina took a step down the stairs, subconsciously grabbing onto Regina’s fingers.

Regina had the decency to pause, allowing for Janis to get herself situated before continuing down the steps. Janis held her breath, shutting her eyes and leaning into her palms. It was definitely a mistake to bring up the idea of falling literal seconds before they reached the stairs, but there was nothing she could do about it now.

Janis didn’t even notice that they had reached the floor until Regina nudged her shoulder with her thumb. The smaller girl instinctively leaned away from the contact before noticing Regina watching her, an unreadable expression on her face. She swallowed and waved to signify her survival, and Regina pulled her gaze away before moving on.

There were many things Janis hated about her situation. The emotional damage thrust upon her by literally /shrinking/ around someone she already felt small around and the fear that she may never return to normal were enough to make her want to cry. Yet, as terrible as they were, they felt like /nothing/ compared to the sudden inability to fend for herself.

She sank further into Regina’s palm as the taller girl left through the front door and approached her car still parked in the driveway. She had always been an independent person, never needing an overload of support from friends or peers. The only person she had ever really opened up to was Damian, and even then it was rare for her to bring up her emotions without a prompt from him first. She hated depending on anyone, and she would rather die than be vulnerable.

But now? She /needed/ Regina. It made her sick to her stomach to know that at three inches tall, she was completely defenseless, to the point that Regina— her worst enemy— refused to leave her alone lest she injure herself. And even if it wasn’t Regina, it would be some other person fretting over her in her tenuous, fragile state. She knew Damian or Cady would be just as worried for her, if not more. 

She was yanked from her thoughts as Regina slid into her car and lifted her up to her shoulder. After a moment’s hesitation, she grabbed onto the white fabric of Regina’s shirt and hoisted herself up. 

“You good?”

“Mhm,” Janis mumbled.

Regina nodded before turning her car key into ignition. The sudden rumble filling the air made Janis jump, and she instinctively reached for an earring that Regina wasn’t wearing today. The second her hand brushed Regina’s neck she pulled away like she had touched fire, and the taller girl sent her an odd look in the rear-view mirror. Janis was grateful that she didn’t mention it, retreating into herself and ironically wishing she was smaller as Regina turned her gaze back to the driveway. As the car rolled forward, Janis resisted from flinching, choosing instead to unnoticeably inch closer to Regina’s neck and tighten her grip on the white fabric below her.

Would it be silly to ask Regina to wear hoop earrings tomorrow? Janis shifted uncomfortably. Adjusting to being tiny would be much easier if she was given assistance, like an earring to hold onto.

The drive to school was quiet. It took a little less than five silent minutes for Janis to catch sight of the blue lettering in the distance, painted above the front doors of the wide building. /Northshore High School./ She still couldn’t believe that yesterday her morning had been completely normal. She had walked through those doors with her own two feet, and not stowed away in a purse.

She glanced down at Regina’s hip where her makeup bag rested. It was worth considering if staying in an unfixed bag among several large, solid objects was more dangerous than staying at Regina’s house on her own, but it was far too late to bring it up now. If she was horribly injured, then she was horribly injured. She could deal with it.

“Are you okay?” Regina asked after a moment, sparing her a quick glance before pulling into the parking lot. Janis blinked.

“What? Yeah, I’m fine.”

Regina gave a small shrug and jostled Janis slightly. “I don’t know. You looked worried for a second.”

Janis made a face, letting out a breathy laugh. “I looked worried?” She paused before sitting up more. Now that Regina was in the parking lot, she was driving much slower, and Janis wasn’t as afraid to move around.

Regina sighed as she pulled into her parking space. “You scrunch up your nose when you’re thinking.”

”...Oh.” Janis never knew that. 

“Mhm.” Regina turned the car off before peering at Janis in the mirror. “So are you scared for school, or something?”

Janis bit her tongue to stop herself from responding in sarcasm. “I mean,” she said with a tilt of her head, “obviously.” She wasn’t /terrified,/ per se, but her heart did race at the idea of being around that many giants.

“Hmm,” Regina said after a moment. Janis waited for her to continue, but she didn’t.

She nearly laughed. “If you’re gonna pretend like you care about me, at least try to be a /little/ more helpful.” Her words earned a startled look from Regina, who somehow seemed more hurt than annoyed until she huffed.

“What, you need me to make you feel better? This isn't preschool. Now let’s go.”

—

If school was boring before, then Janis couldn’t even /describe/ what it was like now.

Just like yesterday, Janis felt like she was trapped in her own little world inside the purse, sitting among the various makeup products like this was some uncomfortable family gathering. Regina had been at school for nearly three hours and Janis had yet to find a comfortable position, which was hard to do, considering that everything within the bag shifted every time Regina moved. By fourth period Janis had just draped herself against a bottle of concealer in the hopes of taking a nap, but she just couldn't relax.

Regina hadn’t tried to interact with her once, and Janis didn’t know whether to be offended or relieved. On one hand, she just wanted to be left alone, but on the other hand /didn’t Regina worry about her at all?/ Janis huffed, picking at the embroidery of her jean jacket. Lunch was next period, so maybe Regina would check on her then.

Light filtered through the walls of the white purse, but aside from the occasional shadow Janis couldn’t quite tell what was going on. She hadn’t been paying attention to what class Regina was in. After a moment of listening to the muffled voice outside, she recognized it as one of the female English teachers. Janis hated her.

“I didn’t think school could get worse,” Janis mumbled to herself before dragging her hands down her face. Somehow, she had managed to get herself even further isolated from her peers at school, and it sucked.

The bell rang, a shrill and uncomfortable sound that she would never get used to. Janis winced for the eighth time today.

She waited for Regina to stand up, allowing the makeup products to shift before adjusting her position. A moment later, she endured the familiar roar of the hallway, far too loud for her even when she was human-sized.

It didn’t take long for Janis to hear Regina’s voice, along with Gretchen’s and Karen’s. It seemed that her taller companion could not leave a single class without immediately flocking to her friends, and it was becoming very annoying.

“...no, he still hasn’t texted me back.” As the girls moved to a quieter part of the school, Janis could pick up on their words. Gretchen, it seemed, could not stop talking about some boy. Typical.

Karen was the first to respond, giving a simple, “That’s sad.”

“He’ll text you when you stop wearing that lipstick,” Regina said shortly. “You look desperate.”

Janis was halfway through rolling her eyes when she was surprised by a fourth voice, soft and familiar. “I like your lipstick.” Janis had nearly forgotten that Cady was friends with the plastics now.

Regina gave a dramatic sigh. “Cady, you need to learn these things. Gretchen, if you want to get his attention, wear your pink lip gloss instead. You look better in pink than red.”

“I don’t have it. You borrowed it for school pictures, remember?”

Janis’s gaze flickered momentarily to the tube of lipgloss across from her, and she froze when Gretchen prompted, “Can I have it back?”

If Janis wasn’t right next to Regina, she might not have noticed her subtle pause. She recovered quickly, high heels resuming their steady clicking. “I left it home. I’ll give it to you tomorrow.”

Janis’s shoulders lowered and she heaved a sigh. Her anxiety was going to kill her someday, she was certain of it.

“Oh, okay. Well, should we head to the cafeteria?”

This time, Regina stopped completely. “Actually, I just remembered, Mr. Southers wanted to see me about some dumb test score.” Janis couldn't see her, but she /knew/ the taller girl was rolling her eyes. “Go on ahead, I’ll see you later.”

The three other girls gave chirpy farewells, reminding Janis of songbirds. Her amused smile fell as the bag suddenly unzipped, and a hand dipped in to scoop her up. “Hey—!”

“Keep your voice down,” Regina muttered, lifting her up to eye level. Janis glanced nervously around the hallway only to see that it was completely barren. The other plastics had already left. “I’m just making sure you’re alive.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Janis took a deep breath, taking a moment to appreciate the air that didn’t smell like lotion. “Well, I didn’t die.” After a moment, she added, “I wouldn’t have died if you left me at your house, either, but you’re not ready for that conversation.” She finished off by crossing her arms, giving a deadpan look.

Regina pushed Janis back with a thumb, making the smaller girl sputter with protests. “We’re already here. Get over it.”

“Fine, fine, whatever.” Somewhat flustered, Janis shoved at Regina’s thumb until she released her. Sitting up, she added, “well, since we’re here, can we go to the art room or something? I’m not going back into that bag unless I have to.”

Regina made a face. “The art room?”

“Yeah, it should be empty during the lunch periods,” Janis explained. “And let’s be real, the cafeteria is a nightmare. There’s no way in hell I’m going in there when I’m this small.” She scrunched her nose at the idea.

Regina paused for a second before saying, “Alright, I’m good with that.” Janis blinked.

“You are?”

“Yeah, I am. You know, you don’t have to be all shocked every time I agree with you,” Regina pointed out with a frown. 

Before Janis could respond Regina swiftly brought her up to her shoulder. Albeit confused, Janis climbed on, inching closer to her neck. “What if someone sees me?”

Regina hummed, and to Janis’s surprise she could /feel/ it. “They probably won’t.” A moment later she brushed her blonde hair to the side, concealing Janis in front of it. Nobody would be able to see her unless they were extremely perceptive. “There.”

Janis exhaled, subconsciously patting at Regina’s hair. “Alright, that’s better. Now let’s go.”

“Mkay.”

Regina traversed the halls with purpose— and her confident stroll was a bit hard to adjust to. Janis fiddled with her jacket sleeves, pressing herself into Regina’s neck as they walked. Leaning into Regina kept the smaller girl concealed from passerby, Janis reminded herself. It had nothing to do with how secure she felt being that close. 

She suppressed a cough. Not at all.

She went deathly still as two freshman girls turned the corner, giggling to each other as they approached. The pair went quiet as Regina passed by them, and for one awful second Janis thought she had been seen— until one of them chirped, “Hi, Regina.”

“Hi, Kathryn,” Regina’s responded without missing a beat. Janis nearly laughed at her suddenly honey-sweet voice. “I love your new haircut.”

The girl beamed, taking a moment to brush her hands through her shoulder-length hair before spitting out a “thank you” and tugging her friend away. Janis could hear them burst into giggles again the second they vanished from sight. 

“That haircut was repulsive,” Regina muttered.

Janis rolled her eyes. Even in middle school, she was used to Regina talking shit about other students behind their backs. The plastic really hadn’t changed.

“That’s mean,” Janis pointed out, wincing at how childish her words sounded. Regina made a face.

“How is that mean? It’s true. It’s not like I said that to her face.”

“I—“ Janis inched away from Regina’s neck, leaning forward to see the taller girl’s face better. /“Still.”/

Regina laughed, the vibrations reverberating through Janis’s whole body. “You’re telling me you /liked/ her hair? It looked like she cut it herself.”

Janis pushed away a very vivid memory of cutting her /own/ hair freshman year. It was atrocious. “Ah…” she placed a hand on her mouth to cover her smile. “Okay, it wasn’t a good look. But you didn’t have to lie to her face like that.”

Regina stopped outside the art room door. Her voice was amused as she asked, “You want me to be honest and tell her she looks like shit?”

“Um—“ Janis hesitated. She knew that what Regina did was wrong, but… she couldn’t really come up for an argument how. “Oh look, we’re here,” Janis announced hastily, gesturing to the door. Regina shook her head with a laugh, but allowed herself to drop the subject and enter the room. 

“Aren’t there usually teachers around, or something?” Regina asked as she flicked on the lights, illuminating the messy room. Long, rectangular tables lined the walls, making space in the center of the room for several easels— one of which Janis remembered using only a day ago. Strange.

“Northshore’s art program is shit,” Janis replied nonchalantly. “Mrs. Knatt is the only art teacher and she doesn’t get paid enough. She’s probably drinking in her car, or something.” Regina laughed.

The taller girl crossed the room and maneuvered Janis to a table, cluttered in painted mugs and small, miscellaneous objects including paper clips and thumbtacks. When Janis’s gaze fell on one of the paper clips she froze, the gears turning in her mind.

“Wait, wait, I have an idea.” Janis crossed the table to the paper clips, scooping one up into her hands. It was light and easy to carry, which was relieving, but that didn’t erase the odd feeling of holding an entire paper clip at this size. It was probably the length of her leg now. 

Shaking away her uncomfortable thoughts she turned back to Regina. “Can you check in that cabinet over there? It should have thread in it.”

Regina narrowed her eyes. “Why?”

“Just do it.”

Regina huffed but complied, turning and making her way to the cabinet. Janis, meanwhile, set to work bending the paper clip out of shape. She had already twisted it into the shape of a hook by the time Regina returned with a spool of black thread and scissors. “I don’t trust you,” Regina muttered.

“No, no, this is a great idea,” Janis insisted, gesturing for Regina to extend the string by widening her arms. “Can you cut it at… I don’t know, like, three feet?”

Regina pursed her lips, clearly disliking being bossed around. Nevertheless, she did as she was told, snipping off a long length of thread and coiling it into a pile at Janis’s feet. “There.”

“Perfect.” Janis beamed, grabbing onto the end of the string and pulling it towards her.

“Are you gonna tell me what you’re doing or not?” Regina asked. 

Janis spared her a glance as she tied the thread around the base of the paper clip hook. “Isn’t it obvious?” She lifted it up, waving it in a clawing motion for emphasis.

Realization dawned on Regina’s face. “Is that a… tiny grappling hook?”

“Fuck yeah it is!” Janis grinned, spinning it in her hand. “Now I can get around on my own. And I can stay at your house!”

Regina made a face. “Who says—“

They both fell silent at the sound of footsteps, and as someone knocked on the door Janis cursed. She barely had time to duck behind one of the mugs as someone leaned into the doorway. “Is someone in here?”

Janis’s heart nearly stopped. She was not expecting to hear /Damian’s/ voice today.

Regina was clearly caught off guard. “Ah— I am.” She flicked her hair over her shoulder, pointedly not looking in Janis’s direction. “Obviously.”

“Oh,” Damian said. Janis tensed at how uninterested he sounded. She was used to receiving only warmth from him; the cold tone was unsettling. “Okay. What are you doing in here?”

Janis sent Regina a panicked look. The taller girl had her eyes on her manicured nails. “Drop… dropping something off. What are /you/ doing?”

Janis couldn’t see Damian from behind the mug, but she could clearly picture the face he was making in her mind. A frown, somewhat confused, but open enough to be giving Regina the benefit of the doubt. She smiled at the thought, then tensed again as he responded. “I need to talk to Mrs. Knatt. Is she here?”

Regina shifted on her feet. “No. What do you need to talk to her about?”

Janis rolled her eyes. Curse Regina’s extroverted nature to start asking questions. “We want Damian to leave,” Janis muttered under her breath.

She immediately paused, blinking several times. That was a phrase she never thought would leave her mouth.

Ice filled her veins. Regina had insisted yesterday that Janis should stay with Damian instead— was the taller girl still considering that? Was she going to reveal her secret?

/Would it be so bad…?/ Janis bit her lip, fiddling with the hook in her hands. She trusted Damian, really, and she was certain that he would take care of her. But the idea of being seen right now by /two/ humans made her want to throw up. 

Damian’s response was casual. “I’m just letting her know that Janis is absent. The two of us were supposed to decorate the hallways for Halloween, but she’s sick.”

“She…” Regina’s voice trailed off, and Janis froze. /Don’t tell him. Don’t tell him. Please./ 

As if Regina could hear her thoughts, she continued on. “She’s absent? I didn’t even notice.” After a moment of pondering, she added, “Probably because I don't care.”

Janis’s face fell. It was harsher than necessary, but at least Regina kept her secret safe.

“Wow, Regina.” Damian’s voice turned hostile, and Janis’s heart stopped. It wasn’t something she heard very often. A beat of silence passed before he said, “Well, if Mrs. Knatt’s not here then I’ll go. See you, Regi—“

“Wait.”

Janis stared wide-eyed up at Regina. /What the fuck is she doing?

Regina gave a sharp exhale. “The day Janis went home sick, did she— I don’t know, did something happen? Did she do anything weird?”

Janis felt like she was burning a hole into Regina’s soul as she stared at her, willing her to shut the fuck up.

Damian was quiet for a long time, making Janis’s stomach ache. It was only when he said, “No, not that I can remember,” that she relaxed, allowing a shaky breath to leave her body. A moment passed, and she swallowed, leaning over to peer around the side of the mug, and there he was— leaning against the doorway, arms crossed, cautious eyes trained on Regina.

It was a strange feeling to see her best friend at this height. She was used to Damian being taller than her, but knowing she was small enough to fit in his hand right now made her stomach twist. Even from across the room the juxtaposition was uncomfortably clear, and she bit her lip before stepping back behind the mug again. She was acutely aware of the way her hands trembled.

“Hmm. Well, okay. See you,” Regina said shortly.

Regina didn’t interact with the art freaks much, Janis knew, and watching her try to keep a civil conversation with Damian— in the art room, no less— was amusing enough to make her smile. Her gaze lingered on Regina as Damian responded, “...alright. Bye.”

“Mhm.” Regina waved, waiting barely two seconds after Damian left before spinning towards Janis, blue eyes wide. Janis instinctively froze under her gaze, but managed to force a laugh.

“Yikes.”

“I didn’t know he was gonna be here,” Regina muttered, running a hand through her hair. Janis peered up at her.

“Thanks,” she said after a moment, earning an odd look from Regina.

“For what?”

Janis rocked on her heels. “For not giving me away. I, um—“ she winced. “I appreciate it. A— A lot.” She cleared her throat, ignoring the blush on her cheeks. 

Regina frowned. “Okay? I didn’t realize it meant that much to you.”

The smaller girl heaved a breath. “Well, it does. Now shut up. Besides, it was annoying how you started asking questions. What were you saying at the end there? Like, the fuck?”

“I was trying to see if you did anything dumb the day you shrank,” Regina said defensively. “I was trying to help you.”

“I— okay, whatever.” Janis hoisted her hook into the air, making her way closer to Regina. /“This/ is gonna get me around easier, so I’m staying home tomorrow.”

“Why—? Okay, fine, fine.”

“And,” Janis added, “don’t forget, we still need to get those potion ingredients. We should go to the store after school.”

Regina squinted. “You don’t want to go to school, but you /do/ want to go to a store?”

“School is shit and I want to get back to normal,” Janis sighed, frowning up at Regina. “Now can you shut the door? I don't want anyone else to just walk in here.”

  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh boo hoo they’re still fighting BUT DAMIAN WAS THERE FOR A SECOND :DD


End file.
